the House of Assembly on Friday when the Transport Minister outlined new legislation introducing road tests for motorbike riders.

Mr. Wayne Furbert was given a rough ride by Shadow Transport spokesman Mr.

Dennis Lister -- as well as UBP MPs Mr. Trevor Moniz and Mrs. Ann Cartwright DeCouto .

Mr. Furbert introduced the second reading of the Auxiliary Bicycles Amendment (Number Three) Act 1995, which will introduce compulsory testing for first time riders of auxiliary bikes, such as scooters, aimed primarily at 16-year-olds.

Mr. Furbert said bikes now were more sophisticated than in the past and it was important to catch people at an early age before they started riding bikes.

The current law, stated tests were taken for bikes over 50cc.

The new test would see a computerised test at the TCD and a manoeuvrability test, including riding round cones shaped in a figure of eight. He said he also hoped in the future to include a road test.

"I was expecting more,'' said Mr. Lister . "The issue needs more discussion and more attention than it was given.'' He pointed out that the law was aimed at private bikes, but people could still hire a bike without taking the test and that it did not include tourists.

"Government does not want to take into account all riders of auxiliary cycles because of the tourists,'' he said. "A local resident can avoid this Bill by not applying for a licence and renting a bike. He is still on the road.'' A loophole had developed in the Government's legislation and it needed plugging, said Mr. Lister.

He also suggested that the legislation was unconstitutional as it "smacked of discrimination'' -- imposing different treatment on one group of people and not on another group, such as visitors.

This, he suggested, could also leave the Government open to lawsuits from visitors injured on their bikes in Bermuda on the grounds that Government ensures local drivers are competent, but not visitors.

As an alternative, Mr. Lister said the PLP would get Transport and Education together to teach young people about the roads and driving skills. Tests, he said, did not discourage bad driving habits, as older people also sometimes drove badly.

"Tests do not teach, they produce results. We need to teach these young people if we want better driving habits,'' said Mr. Lister.

Mrs. Cartwright DeCouto (UBP) denied the legislation would be unconstitutional and said similar distinguishing rules existed between Bermudians and non-Bermudians over buying property.

"The standard of driving habits has deteriorated rapidly,'' she said. "That relates to every single vehicle. This Bill will not address that decline in driving standards.

"I was amazed and distressed to see that a component of the test was riding in a figure of eight around cones. The problem is flagrant disrespect for the rules of the road and the law of the land.

"I would urge the Minister to concentrate on a written test as oppose to a riding test.'' The Rev. Trevor Woolridge (PLP) also spoke of the need for education to help establish good driving habits, although former Transport Minister Mr. Maxwell Burgess , rallied the troops with a rousing speech in favour of the Bill.

"We have before us a piece of legislation designed to get young people and first-time riders to be tested before they get onto the roads. We are attempting to set up a mechanism to encourage people to have some appreciation of our roads before getting onto them.'' Visitors were tested by licensed dealers who had a responsibility to ensure visitors were properly tested.

Ms Jennifer Smith (PLP) also called for greater education and asked that Project Ride be stepped up in Bermuda's schools.

The Shadow Education Minister said the teaching scheme was available to all schools, but had been taken up by just a handful. She wanted schools to be instructed to implement the scheme.

"Project Ride is fully funded and available to be taught in every school, but it is not being taught in every school,'' she said. "Why have we not instructed each of our schools to have Project Ride operating?'' The process of teaching should also start in primary schools, when children got onto their push bikes, said Ms Smith.

Mr. Moniz (UBP) also expressed his concern about training given to tourists riding auxiliary bikes.

"I would urge the Government to ensure that a higher level of training and education is given to people driving auxiliary cycles,'' he said.

A motion to withdraw the legislation was defeated 21 votes to 17, but Mr.

Furbert said he would take account of the PLP concerns at the committee stage of the Bill.

Mr. Jerome Dill , Minister for Education, said that there was no reason why the new measures should not have the support of the Opposition.

"If we were to introduce a course of riding skills, which we will do, we will be focusing on teenagers of 14 and upwards. That's an appropriate juncture.'' Mr. Dill added: "There are not only fatalities but a large number of accidents which are probably -- and I stress probably -- unreported.

"If we are doing everything we can to reduce the incidence of accidents on our streets we need to appreciate we have to train our young people.'' And he said that large numbers of young people would benefit from the test and from further road safety measures which would go beyond that.

Mrs. Lois Browne-Evans (PLP) predicted the legislation would only mean more interference in the rights of young people.

And she said extra work would clog further the bureaucracy of the Transport Control Department, which was already struggling to keep up with the volume of work it had.

She said: "I know young people are going to suffer. It will obviate whatever we are trying to do by this examination process.

"If we wanted to encourage better driving on the roads, we should make more onerous legislation for these cycle liveries which rent cycles to our visitors.'' But Youth and Sport Minister Tim Smith (UBP) said that countries across the world had gone far beyond the matter of "a simple test''.

And he pointed out that he, if he had never driven before, could, at the age of 34, get a licence and be able to buy a bike without any problems, which had to be wrong.

But Mr. Stanley Morton (PLP) said he thought that raising more revenue was the primary concern of the proposed laws.

"The Government cares not whether tourists who come to our Island are adequately trained or properly skilled, simply because of the dollar sign.'' Dr. David Dyer said that riders who had been convicted of motoring offences should also be required to take a test to prove they knew the rules of the road.

WRITTEN TEST -- Mrs. Ann Cartwright DeCouto MORE SOPHISTICATED -- Mr. Wayne Furbert LOOPHOLE WARNING -- Mr. Dennis Lister