CONREP Hikes Tuition For 2016

NEWINGTON, CT – Prospective motorcycle riders in Connecticut will pay more in 2016 to get an “M” endorsement on their driver’s licenses. The Connecticut Rider Education Program run by the state Department of Transportation has raised tuition for its courses.

“The fee is increasing because the cost to run the program has increased,” said Nicholas Just, who runs the CONREP program. While he couldn’t pinpoint the last time there was a tuition hike, Just said it has been “at least five years” since the last increase. In addition to tuition, CONREP also receives $4 every time a motorcycle is registered in the state and that amount hasn’t changed since 1984, he said.

The Basic Rider Course will now cost $220, up from $200 last year. The Intermediate Rider Course will cost $130, up from $115, while the Experienced Rider Course will cost $100, up from $85. The cost of the Sidecar-Trike Three Wheel Course has also increased to $220 from $200.

A CONREP trike class at Gateway Community College in North Haven

A total of 4,909 students enrolled in CONREP courses in 2015, with 4,757 of them taking the Basic Rider Course for beginners. State law requires that prospective riders pass a training course, either conducted by CONREP or by a private school, to get the required motorcycle endorsement.

Enrollment in 2015 dipped slightly from the 5,057 students who took the courses in 2014. The highest enrollment in CONREP courses was in 2008 when 6,290 students enrolled.

The tuition hike comes as CONREP is experiencing instructor attrition. The number of certified instructors has decreased from 154 in 2013 to 120 in 2014 and 100 in 2015, although the training of seven new teachers in the fall has boosted the number to 107. Instructors taught 489 courses in 2015.

The drop-off in faculty is largely due to the gradual implementation last year of a new curriculum from the Motorcycle Safety Foundation. Rather than go through retraining many longtime instructors instead opted out of teaching.  “That’s definitely the response that I got for the most part,” said Just.

The changeover in the curriculum began last spring with the introduction of new classroom materials, and was followed by the phasing in of different riding range drills.

“The classroom concentrates a lot more on personal responsibilities, behaviors and attitudes, and self-assessment so that every time a rider prepares to ride, they’re assessing those things that they are taught: What’s my mood? Am I tired? Have I been drinking? There’s a constant self assessment taking place,” Just said.

“The range concentrates a lot more on street riding. It’s faster paced. Not quite as much time spent on the basics,” he added.

CONREP is seeking candidates to become instructors. An informational session is planned from 10 a.m. until noon on Saturday at Naugatuck Valley Community College. To sign up, interested candidates may call John Purdy Jr. at 203-575-8123.