Safety Council.

It hopes to double the number of teens taking the moped training course and is now pushing Government to make it compulsory both for teens and adults.

Road Safety Office Roxanne Christopher said motoring education was too important a subject to be left to chance.

She said: "No-one wakes up knowing the rules of the road or knowing how to handle a bike. But apart from Project Ride there is no driver education for young people.'' An advertising campaign beginning in is aimed at doubling numbers on Project Ride from an annual average of 300.

Ms Christopher said: "It's an improved project. It started eight years ago and a lot has changed. We needed to modernise it as it had become archaic.

She said the free lessons ran were open to students aged over 15 and a half.

Although they could only take their practical test when they had reached 16.

"We make the course as friendly and practical as possible. It's a lot of fun but it's also challenging. Kids do it at school and at the TCD centre. They look forward to it and bikes are provided.

She estimated that those on the course would reduce their chance of having an accident by up to 85 percent.

She said: "A lot of kids get in an accident in the first two weeks of getting on a bike.'' The Council is now pushing the government to make the 12-hour programme compulsory for students by the school year starting in 2000.

And she said evidence showed adults also needed it.

"Most accidents are caused by 31-40 year-olds. Perhaps they get over confident if they have been driving for some period of time.''