The exam day

On the exam day, one motorcycle will be booked for you for basically the whole afternoon (my exam was in the afternoon, but I believe it should be similar if scheduled in the morning). You will be required to arrive about an hour in advance so you’ll have some more time for a final practice. Once the examiners arrive, here is how it will proceed.

At first, they will ask everyone to line up the same way as you were lining up when waiting for your turn to practice driving 8’s in the slope. The only different thing is they will arrange the order to their liking (I can’t remember if it was alphabetically or not). 2 or 3 examiners will observe you and make sure you do not commit any mistake while doing the “8’s in the slope” exercise. When you complete it (and hopefully pass) the examiners will ask you to go wait for the road trip. Those who fail the “8’s in the slope” will not be able to go.

Once everyone has gone through the “8’s in the slope” and the skimming has been done, the examiners will arrange the motorcycles by category. Usually 650cc are positioned directly behind the examiner who takes the lead, then come the 125cc and the 50cc in the end. While driving, you have to stay RIGHT BEHIND the lead examiner in a straight line. If you deviate either on the right or the left a bit too much to his liking, he will FAIL you. If you overtake him or another student, he will FAIL you. I know the left or right bit seems a bit stupid, why would I want to stay right behind him, what’s the problem in being in his wing a bit? I’ve asked the driving school guy but he just gave me the typical Macau answer: “Those are the rules made by IACM, I don’t make the rules, I just tell you how it is and don’t know the reason, I’m just teaching you how to get your license, once you pass you can do whatever you want on the road…” you get the idea… One last thing, if you can’t keep up and the lead examiner gets too much ahead of you, he will FAIL you too.

Anyway, once you start driving around there should not be any problem as you already know the route, just remember the following:

1. When stopped, always put your LEFT (and left only) foot on the ground.
2. Always keep your RIGHT foot on the brakes.
3. Always signal when turning or stopping along the road.
4. Never stop your motorcycle on a zebra crossing.
5. Watch out for pedestrians.

The first 3 points are quite obvious but let me develop a bit on 4 & 5. As I mentioned earlier, the examiners will arrange the motorcycles by category, which means there will be a fairly long line of motorcycles behind him, meaning you will have to anticipate when stopping. For example, if you’re 20 meters behind the lead examiner and he decides to stop 20 meters after a zebra crossing, that would make you stop right on top of it if you keep the same distance. You have to anticipate this and stop right before it, that’s all. Same thing goes for pedestrians, you have to stop even they’re not crossing the street yet… If they’re just waiting on the sidewalk or getting closer to crossing the street, you have stop and let them go first.

If you understand and execute all this well, you will be holding a brand new Macau driving license at the end of the day. If it was a bad day and you didn’t pass, well no worries, you still can re-take the exam some other time. Be aware that failure has a price though, as it will cost you an extra MOP2,280 to re-apply for the exam (price including 5 extra lessons).

The lesson itself

What exactly are you going to learn during those 25 lessons you have to attend? Well, the first thing you’ll ever do there are 8’s… What do I mean by 8’s? Well, check out the picture below and you’ll understand quickly.

Exactly, for the first few lessons (well… depending on how quick you’ll learn), you won’t be driving in circles but in 8’s. You can see the 8 shaped yellow track on the floor… This exercise basically teaches you how to maneuver your bike, how to tilt it the right way to turn left or right, how to position yourself properly and how to make the best use of the clutch. To perform this exercise, you normally won’t need to touch the throttle at all… The “teacher” will send you to the next exercise when you will demonstrate you can easily do those 8’s without coming out of the yellow track. As I had some experience driving, it took me about 3 lessons to train for the real thing that will be part of the final exam.




The “real thing” as I called it earlier, is basically the same exercise as the first one, except that you’ll have to make those 8’s in a slope… There’s no more 8 shaped track this time, only yellow boundaries all around the practice area and the “parking box” that’s located about half way up on the left side (it’s hard to see it in the picture). The sequence goes something like:
1. Position your bike at the lower left corner and wait for the signal to go
2. Go up the slope and stop in the “parking box” without touching the yellow edges
3. Do a “hill start” and make 3 8’s while going up and down the slope
4. At the end of the 3rd 8, drive back inside the “parking box” and stop
5. Do another “hill start”, then a U turn to drive your bike down the slope and out the practice area.
6. Stop your bike outside the parking area, on the lower right corner.

I know it sounds a little bit complicated; maybe the following sequence will help you understand.





Here are the dos and don’ts of this exercise:
1. Never cross the yellow boundaries
2. When stopped, always put your LEFT (and left only) foot on the ground
3. Always keep your RIGHT foot on the brakes
4. Never set your foot down when driving

Enjoy learning it and learn to enjoy it because you’ll be doing this for the next 20 or so lessons. “20 LESSONS!!?!?! I THOUGHT WE ONLY HAD 25??!?!”… Yes, I know, but that’s how it goes here in Macau, you don’t actually learn how to ride your bike on the road in the traffic. You’ll only get to go out of the practice range the last couple of sessions and for something like 10 minutes each time. It’s quite short but they’ll only show you ONE route only and that’ll be the one you will have to take during your exam… As it’s a pretty short one too, your road trips will be at minimal. Take a look at the following map to get some idea about the exam route.


View Macau Exam Route in a larger map

And that’s basically it… Of course, if you’ve never driven a motorcycle before, I believe you will also spend some time learning about the bike itself, like what the uses of different switches are or how to shift gears.

Things worth noting:
1. The pictures were taken in a pretty quiet day. It can get really crowded and you may have to wait for around 20 minutes before being able to practice on the slope, limiting you to 2 to 3 tries per lesson.
2. There is no water dispenser, drinks vending machine or convenience store nearby.
3. It can get pretty sunny, wear long sleeves if you easily get sunburns.
4. When you book your time for a lesson, you’re only booking the motorbike. It does not include someone to coach you for the whole lesson and it does not insure you will have space to practice.

A few months later…

You’ve finally reached the time to take your first lesson… If your case is similar to mine, you’ll probably have to phone the instructor first to book a specific time. His number should be provided by the driving school you’ve joined.

All schools have their practices taken at the same place. You will have to get to a “practice range” in the COTAI area, it’s the only one in Macau and it shouldn’t be really hard to find.

If you drive there (I know you don’t have your motorcycle license but you may be driving a car), the easiest way is to park in the Macau Dome’s parking lot. It is free of charge and within walking distance of the practice range.
If you do not own a car, I guess the bus is your best choice… Buses going to COTAI or Coloane should get you there, try looking at 15, 21, 21A, 25, 26, 26A bus routes. There are 2 bus companies in Macau, namely TransMac and TCM. Try checking their websites for info but it’s unfortunately all in Chinese. Here's a useful map I've prepared to help you find the location:


View Driving Practice Range in a larger map

When getting there, you’ll have to find a way to know where your instructor is… It can get tricky as all the schools are there and there’s no sign or anything to help out. The best way is to have a business card from your school and just show it to the first guy you’ll bump into… Of course, it’s even better if you can ask a girl ^^.

After meeting him, he will prepare some forms for you and ask you to go purchase some of those MOP10 stamps I mentioned in my previous post. You can buy a bunch of them at once, just do not forget to get them chopped every time you take a lesson as it will act as proof you took all 25 mandatory lessons.

At that point, the instructor should introduce your ride to you. Most schools (not to say ALL of them) use the very popular Suzuki S40 (Suzuki Savage 650 for older models). It’s a pretty reliable and pretty comfortable motorcycle which is probably the reason why it’s so popular among driving schools. It handles quite well too, although it’s a bit heavy and will not forgive the mistakes you may make while still in your first few days of practice… So if you tip it on the side too much, you’ll need some muscles to prevent it from hitting the ground or lifting it up once it’s lying on the asphalt.









A quick note regarding protective gear… The instructor will lend you a helmet every time you come to a lesson, you know, one of those 10 years old Calimero egg shells type helmets that was worn by 10,000 students before you.
So if you want to wear a proper helmet that fits your head, protects you in case of fall and smells funny only because YOU sweat in it and haven’t washed it for a while, do yourself a favor and bring your own.

Looking for a school now?

So you’ve read my last post, understood it, followed my advice and setup a budget…? I guess you’re ready to subscribe to a driving school then. It’s not really hard to find one, really, as there’s a plethora of driving schools in Macau. You can find a list over here.

I personally went to Escola Condução Sang Chung Wa (Address: Tak Fok Seaview Gdn Kam Keng Kok in Taipa. Tel: 2882 0655). I had no particular reason for choosing that one over another, it just happened to be near where I reside, which finally didn’t really matter as I never set foot over there after subscribing. At least I was able to find someone who spoke English which helped setting up my application.

I believe most of the schools more or less charge the same, and I know by experience they all practice at the same place and use the same model of motorbikes as well… I’ll tell more about practice sessions in another post.

So if you’re holding a valid Macau driving license, they should charge you as follows:

• Application to driving exam + all related paper works and documents: MOP1,100
• 25 lessons + rental of the motorcycle on exam day: MOP3,250
• Insurance: MOP90
• Total: MOP4,440

You’ll also need to bring your Macau ID card, Macau driving license and 6 ID pictures (size 1.5 inches, in color and with white background). In case you do not hold a Macau ID, you can apply using your passport and work permit (they call it a “blue card” here).

When submitting your application, they will take you to a doctor (included in the price) to check your sight and make sure you’re not colorblind.

One thing that is good to know in advance is that there will be quite a lengthy period of time between the day you apply and your exam. In my case, I applied in April and was scheduled for exam in November… A nice 7 months wait… So basically, although you’ve applied and paid, the school will advise you to wait and start taking your lessons around 2 months before your exam. And you’d better keep good track of time as the school will not contact you and remind you about it.

One more thing not shown above, a MOP10 fee is requested to use the practice range for each lesson taken. Basically, you’ll have to purchase some stamps and get one chopped every time you practice (or two, or three, depending on how long you stay) so it adds MOP250 to the total price, although it is not paid to the school but to IACM (Instituto para os Assuntos Cívicos e Municipais)

Remarks:

• The information/prices shown are up to date on posting day.
• The information/prices shown refer to “A type license for motorcycles of 650cc and over” application.
• The fee related to 25 lessons + rental of the motorcycle on exam day can be paid on application day or later when starting taking the lessons.
• Each lesson lasts 50 minutes.

You are not ready to look for a school just yet…

I had a small hiccup during my application to convert my license to a local one… For some reason, my government decided not to reply to the DSAT’s enquiry regarding my license so they proposed the following to me: “We’ll allow you to have a Macau license to drive cars only, but your other licenses won’t be transferred…”

I felt kind of funny as I had been riding a scooter around for over 7 years without any problem and DSAT was now telling me they thought I was not eligible anymore (something about my country and Macau different requirements when it comes to motorcycles licenses…). So anyway, my only choice to ride legally was to get some lessons and pass the driving test.

I’ll talk about my experience with my driving school and all in a later post… What comes first is a more financial subject that I want to cover as motorcycles’ prices here differ quite a bit when compared to U.S. or Europe… Here are some price ranges for different types of motorcycles:

• 125cc: HKD15,000 to 20,000
• 250cc: HKD35,000 to 60,000
• 400cc: HKD70,000 to 80,000
• 650cc and over: HKD80,000 to 120,000

This short list should give you a better idea of how much money you will have to save to afford your ride. Of course, you may find some exceptions here and there… Also note that I’ve only included prices for street bikes (meaning scooters have been excluded) and this is only for reference…

So take a good look at the prices, go around the different dealers (I’ll give a list and map later on), try to find a bike you like… Once you’ve set your mind and accepted the fact you’ll have to spend that much money on a ride, start looking for a school and subscribe.

Driving in Macau

So here you are… Just off the boat or airplane, you’ve successfully cleared the immigration and now have only one thought on your mind: “I need some wheels!” Well, not so fast… You need a license first! That’s if you want to drive legally of course…

First thing you have to consider is how long you are actually staying in Macau. If you are planning on staying for 1 year or less, you can skip that post as you will be able to get a driving authorization very easily…

Just be on your way to the traffic police station and look for the right counter. They’ll issue a paper, valid for 6 months, that basically states “the holder is allowed to drive whatever is written on his foreign driving license” and you’re good to go… You can actually get that paper first, and drive that way for the first year you’ll be staying in Macau.

After a year, though, you’re supposed to get a local license if you want to keep on driving. Your first option is to start from scratch… Find a driving school, pass the written and driving tests and you’ll be the proud owner of a Macau driving license. One little detail, though, is written tests have to be conducted either in Chinese or Portuguese so if you neither read nor understand either one of these, you’re kinda stuck…

Your best option, that will save you some time and money, is to exchange your license for a local one. That way, you’ll have the written test cleared automatically and will be able to take any driving test you want to (that’s if you want to drive something more than you already can, and if not, you won’t have to take any driving test)

“What do you mean exchange my license to a local one? I do not want to lose the right of driving in my country!”
Don’t worry, the Macau authorities will not take your license away to issue a local one… I am now holding both licenses and can drive when I go back to my country. Although I’ve heard they actually confiscate your license if it was issued by the Portuguese government to send it back to Portugal… So if you’re Portuguese, you may want to find some kind of a trick before handing your license to them.

“OK I’m reassured now, how do I get one?”
Actually, the process is pretty straight forward. You have to go to Direcção dos Serviços para os Assuntos de Tráfego (DSAT) located at the following adress:
Avenida da Praia Grande, 762-804, Edifício China Plaza, 2nd floor.
Hotline: +853 8866 6363.
Website: http://www.dsat.gov.mo (only in Chinese and Portuguese)

You’ll have to fill in an application, and if you want to be ahead of the game, try to get those documents filed in before going there:

• Form nº 3A
• Form nº011/DLC
• Medical Certificate

You will also need to provide:

• a copy of a valid Macau ID (I think passports should work too, call their hotline for confirmation)
• 2 ID pictures, size 1.5 inches, in color and with white background (just ask for a driving license picture in a photo shop and they’ll know what you need)
• Last but not least: 1,000 Patacas

With all this you should be good to go… Of course, do not forget to bring you foreign license and all the originals (ID, passport, whatever…). It could take a while as they’ll try to contact your government to verify the validity of your license and such. I’ve got mine after 3 months but some of my colleagues only had to wait for 1 month, it all depends on your luck I guess.