Technical Standards Documents

Effective Date:  August 22, 2007
Mandatory Compliance Date:  February 22, 2008

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Technical Standards Document 
Number 123, Revision 0

Motorcycle Controls and Displays

(Ce document est aussi disponible en français.)

Introduction

As defined by section 12 of the Motor Vehicle Safety Act, a Technical Standards Document (TSD) is a document that reproduces an enactment of a foreign government (e.g. a Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard issued by the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration). According to the Act, the Motor Vehicle Safety Regulations may alter or override some provisions contained in a TSD or specify additional requirements; consequently, it is advisable to read a TSD in conjunction with the Act and its counterpart Regulation. As a guide, where the corresponding Regulation contains additional requirements, footnotes indicate the amending subsection number.

TSDs are revised from time to time in order to incorporate amendments made to the reference document, at which time a Notice of Revision is published in the Canada Gazette, Part I. All TSDs are assigned a revision number, with "Revision 0" designating the original version.

In order to facilitate the incorporation of a TSD, certain non-technical changes may be made to the foreign enactment. These may include the deletion of words, phrases, figures, or sections that do not apply under the Act or Regulations, the conversion of imperial to metric units, the deletion of superseded dates, and minor changes of an editorial nature. Additions are underlined, and provisions that do not apply are stroked through. Where an entire section has been deleted, it is replaced by: "[CONTENT DELETED]". Changes are also made where there is a reporting requirement or reference in the foreign enactment that does not apply in Canada. For example, the name and address of the U.S. Department of Transportation are replaced by those of the Department of Transport.

Compliance with the requirements of a TSD that is being introduced for the first time is not mandatory until six months after publication in the Canada Gazette, Part II, of the Regulations that incorporate the TSD. In the case of a revision, compliance becomes mandatory six months after publication of the Notice of revision in the Canada Gazette, Part I, as long as the requirements of the previous version continue to be met. Voluntary compliance is permitted as of the Effective Date of the TSD.

Official Version of Technical Standards Documents

Technical Standards Documents may be consulted electronically in both HTML and Portable Document Format (PDF) on the Department of Transport’s Web site at www.tc.gc.ca/RoadSafety/mvstm_tsd/index_e.htm. The PDF version is a replica of the TSD as published by the Department and is to be used for the purposes of legal interpretation and application. The HTML version is provided for information purposes only.

(Original signed by)

Director, Standards Research and Development
for the Minister of Transport, Infrastructure
and Communities
Ottawa, Ontario

Technical Standards Document
Number 123, Revision 0

MOTORCYCLE CONTROLS AND DISPLAYS

The text of this document is based on Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard No. 123, Motorcycle Controls and Displays, as published in the U.S. Code of Federal Regulations, Title 49, Part 571, revised as of October 1, 2006

S1. Scope

This Technical Standards Document (TSD) standard specifies requirements for the location, operation, identification, and illumination of motorcycle controls and displays, and requirements for motorcycle stands and footrests.

S2. Purpose

The purpose of this TSD standard is to minimize accidents caused by operator error in responding to the motoring environment by standardizing certain motorcycle controls and displays.

[CONTENT DELETED] For applicability, see Schedule III and subsection 123(1) of Schedule IV to the Motor Vehicle Safety Regulations.

S4. Definitions

Clockwise and counterclockwise mean opposing directions of rotation around the following axes, as applicable:

(Sens des aiguilles d'une montre et sens contraire des aiguilles d'une montre)

Scooter means a motorcycle that:

S5. Requirements

S5.1 Each motorcycle shall be equipped with a supplemental engine stop control, located and operable as specified in Table 1.¹

S5.2 Each motorcycle to which this TSD standard applies shall meet the following requirements:

S5.2.1 Control location and operation. If any item of equipment listed in Table 1, Column 1, is provided, the control for such item shall be located as specified in Column 2 and operable as specified in Column 3. Each control located on a right handlebar shall be operable by the operator's right hand throughout its full range without removal of the operator's right hand from the throttle. Each control located on a left handlebar shall be operable by the operator's left hand throughout its full range without removal of the operator's left hand from the handgrip. If a motorcycle with an automatic clutch other than a scooter is equipped with a supplemental rear brake control, the control shall be located on the left handlebar. If a scooter with an automatic clutch is equipped with a supplemental rear brake control, the control shall be on the right side and operable by the operator’s right foot. A supplemental control shall provide brake actuation identical to that provided by the required control of Table 1, Item 11, of this TSD Standard. If a motorcycle is equipped with self-proportioning or antilock braking devices utilizing a single control for front and rear brakes, the control shall be located and operable in the same manner as a rear brake control, as specified in Table 1, Item 11, and in this paragraph.

S5.2.2 Display illumination and operation. If an item of equipment listed in Table 2, Column 1, is provided, the display for such item shall be visible to a seated operator under daylight conditions, shall illuminate as specified in Column 2, and shall operate as specified in Column 3. 

S5.2.3 Control and display identification. If an item of equipment in Table 3, Column 1, is provided, the item and its operational function shall be identified by:²

S5.2.5 Footrests. Footrests shall be provided for each designated seating position. Each footrest for a passenger other than an operator shall fold rearward and upward when not in use.⁴

Table 1 — Motorcycle Control Location and Operation Requirements

Table 2 — Motorcycle Display Illumination and Operation Requirements

Table 3 — Motorcycle Control and Display Identification Requirements⁵

No.	Column 1	Column 2	Column 3	Column 4
	Equipment	Control and Display  Identification Word	Control and Display  Identification Symbol	Identification at Appropriate Position of Control and Display
1	Ignition	Ignition or Contact	_________	Off or Arrêt
2	Supplemental Engine Stop  (Off, Run)	Engine Stop and  Arrêt du moteur		Off and Arrêt, Run and Marche
3	Manual Choke or Mixture Enrichment	Choke and Étrangleur or Enrichener and Enrichissement		_________
4	Electric Starter	_________		Start and  Démarreur¹
5	Headlamp Upper-Lower Beam Control	Lights and Phares		Hi and Route Lo and Code
6	Horn	Horn and Avertisseur		_________
7	Turn Signal	Turn and Clignotant		L and G, R and D
8	Speedometer	MPH or MPH and km/h5	_________	MPH4 MPH, km/h5
9	Neutral Indicator	Neutral and Mort		_________
10	Upper Beam Indicator	High Beam and Faisceau-route		_________
11	Tachometer	R.P.M. or r/min. or Tr/min.	_________	_________
12	Fuel Tank Shutoff Valve  (Off, On, Res.)	Fuel or Carburant		Off or Fermé, On or Ouvert, Res. or Aux.

¹ Required only if electric starter is separate from ignition switch.
² Framed areas may be filled.  
³ The pair of arrows is a single symbol. When the indicators for left and right turn operate independently, however, the two arrows will be considered separate symbols and may be spaced accordingly.
⁴ MPH increase in a clockwise direction. Major graduations and numerals appear at 10-mph intervals, minor graduations at the 5-mph intervals.
⁵ If the speedometer is graduated in miles per hour (MPH) and in kilometers per hour (km/h), the identifying words or abbreviation shall be “MPH” and “km/h” in any combination of upper or lower case letters.

 

ENDNOTES:

¹ Please see subsections 123(2) and (3) of the Motor Vehicle Safety Regulations (MVSR) for additional requirements.

² Please see subsections 123(5), (6), (8), and (9) of the MVSR for additional requirements.

³ Please see subsection 123(13) of the MVSR for additional requirements.

⁴ Please see subsection 123(14) of the MVSR for an additional requirement.