When Do You Need a Motorcycle License in Pennsylvania?
If you want to ride a street-legal motorcycle on public roads in Pennsylvania, you must have a motorcycle endorsement on your state-issued driver’s license. You can buy a motorcycle without an endorsement on your license.
As long as it is street legal, titled, registered, and insured, you could use it to learn how to ride after obtaining a learner’s permit. But you cannot ride on public roads without a street-legal motorcycle and either a motorcycle endorsement or learner’s permit.
Can you get a motorcycle license without a driver’s license in PA?
You cannot obtain an endorsement to ride a motorcycle in PA without first having a state-issued driver’s license. If you obtained a motorcycle endorsement in another state and move to Pennsylvania, the state will issue an endorsement along with a driver’s license after you establish your residency.
Do you need a motorcycle license for a moped, ATV, or dirt bike?
You do not need a motorcycle license to purchase and ride a moped or an ATV in the state. You can buy and ride dirt bikes and ATVs on trails and designated dirt-bike riding areas without a driver’s license or motorcycle endorsement.
Do I need a motorcycle license for a trike?
A street-legal trike is considered to be a motorcycle with more than two wheels and requires a motorcycle endorsement on your Pennsylvania driver’s license. If the vehicle has a single front wheel for steering and two wheels in the rear with at least one serving as a drive wheel, the state regulates that vehicle as a motorcycle. You need a motorcycle endorsement to operate one on public roads.
Autocycles are different and do not require motorcycle endorsements. An autocycle, such as a Slingshot, has two front wheels with a steering wheel that handles the steering and a single drive wheel in the rear. Because they ride like cars and are more stable than motorcycles or trikes, you do not need a motorcycle endorsement to drive autocycles in the state, only a driver’s license is required.
Do I need a motorcycle license for a scooter?
If you buy a 150cc or a 125cc scooter and intend to ride it on public roads in Pennsylvania, you must have a driver’s license with a motorcycle endorsement. The Commonwealth classifies any two-wheeled motorized vehicle that produces more than 5 horsepower to be a motorcycle. A scooter with a 125cc or a 150cc engine produces much more than 5 horsepower and does not have pedals like a moped.
This article has been provided for informational purposes only and is based on the most reliable information available on the date of publication.
Sources
- https://www.dmv.pa.gov/pages/faq%20pages/motorcycle-permit-process-frequently-asked-questions.aspx
- https://www.dmv.pa.gov/Driver-Services/Motorcyclists/pages/motorcycle-license.aspx
- https://www.dmv.pa.gov/Information-Centers/Laws-Regulations/Pages/AUTOCYCLE-LAW.aspx
- https://www.dmv.pa.gov/VEHICLE-SERVICES/Title-Registration/Pages/Motor-Scooters.aspx
- https://www.dot.state.pa.us/Public/DVSPubsForms/BMV/BMV%20Fact%20Sheets/fs-momo.pdf