Gaimen50-question practice tests in the real exam formatWhat does 車両 (sharyō) mean? Bicycles and mopeds included
Updated: 2026-10
車両 (しゃりょう, sharyō) is the umbrella term for motor vehicles (自動車), mopeds (原動機付自転車), light vehicles (軽車両) and trolleybuses (Road Traffic Act (道路交通法) Art. 2(1)(viii)). Bicycles are light vehicles, so they are 車両 too. On a road with a 'vehicles prohibited' (車両通行止め) sign, not only cars but also mopeds and bicycles may not pass. Streetcars are not 車両; the law calls both together 車両等.
Legal definition and 車両等
Article 2(1)(viii) defines 車両 as 'motor vehicles, mopeds, light vehicles and trolleybuses'. Light vehicles include bicycles, handcarts, rear-cars, sleds and draft animals such as horses and cattle (item xi).
Streetcars (路面電車, running on rails) are not 車両. The law calls vehicles and streetcars together 車両等 (Art. 2(1)(xvii)). Rules such as slowing down (徐行) and pedestrian crossings use 車両等 as their subject, so they also apply to streetcars.
Spelling and reading: 車両 (しゃりょう / sharyō). In test questions, 車両 never means only cars.
| Term | Includes | Basis |
|---|---|---|
| 自動車 | Cars, trucks, buses, motorcycles, special vehicles | Art. 2(1)(ix) |
| 車両 | 自動車 + mopeds + light vehicles + trolleybuses | Art. 2(1)(viii) |
| 車両等 | 車両 + streetcars | Art. 2(1)(xvii) |
When you are not a 車両 (pushing a bike, etc.)
A person walking while pushing a motorcycle, a two-wheeled moped or a bicycle is treated as a pedestrian (Art. 2(3)(ii)). According to the official Rules of the Road (教則), this does not apply if the engine is running, if it is towing another vehicle, or if it has a sidecar.
People moving a wheelchair for persons with disabilities or a walking aid are also pedestrians (Art. 2(3)(i)).
Main rules where 車両 is the subject
The following rules have 車両 as their subject, so they concern mopeds and bicycles as well as cars.
- 'Vehicles prohibited' (車両通行止め) sign: no 車両 may pass. 'Closed to all traffic' (通行止め): pedestrians, vehicles and streetcars may not pass (教則 Appendix 3)
- With a supplementary sign '原付を除く' (except mopeds), mopeds may pass — the excluded type is outside the restriction
- Keeping left: motor vehicles and general mopeds keep 'to the left', while specified small mopeds and light vehicles keep 'to the left edge' (Art. 18(1))
- Even in no-overtaking places, overtaking light vehicles and specified small mopeds (特定小型原動機付自転車) is not prohibited (Art. 30)
- Bus-only lanes (専用通行帯) may be used by small special vehicles, mopeds and light vehicles (教則 Ch. 5 Sec. 2)
How it is tested and the traps
Example 1: 'On a road with this sign (車両通行止め), cars, mopeds and light vehicles may not pass' → True. 車両 includes mopeds and bicycles.
Example 2: 'On a road with a 車両通行止め sign plus a supplementary sign 原付を除く, mopeds may not pass either' → False. Mopeds may pass.
Example 3: 'Even within an intersection and 30 m before it, you may overtake a light vehicle' → True. The exception covers only light vehicles and specified small mopeds, not general mopeds.
If you assume 車両 means the same as 自動車, you will miss these questions.
Practise in your own language
Since October 2025, the knowledge test is 50 true/false questions in 30 minutes, and you need 45 correct. The scope of 車両, 自動車 and 車両等 appears across sign, lane and overtaking questions. menkyopass explains each question in English (first mock test and 3 topics free).
Practice questions using this term
- On a road with this sign, no motor vehicles, motorized bicycles (mopeds), or light vehicles (bicycles, etc.) may pass.
- Even small special motor vehicles, motorized bicycles (mopeds), and light vehicles must not drive in a lane reserved exclusively for route buses (bus-only lane).
- If a Closed to Vehicles sign has an auxiliary plate reading 'except mopeds,' motorized bicycles (mopeds) still cannot use the road.
- Even when a green right-turn arrow is shown, motorized bicycles (mopeds) that must make a two-step right turn, and light vehicles, may not start turning right.
- A road whose center line or vehicle traffic lanes continue through the middle of an intersection is a priority road.
- When there is an obstacle such as a parked vehicle ahead in your path, you must stop or slow down in advance and give way to vehicles coming from the opposite direction.
- Inside a tunnel, you may stop or park only when vehicle traffic lanes are provided.
- Inside a tunnel, overtaking is prohibited whether or not there are vehicle traffic lanes.
- Even at an intersection and within 30 meters before it, you may overtake a light vehicle (bicycle, etc.).
- On ordinary roads with a center line or marked lanes where no maximum speed is set by signs or markings, the statutory maximum speed for motor vehicles is 60 km/h.
FAQ
Q. Is a bicycle a 車両?
A. Yes. A bicycle is a light vehicle (軽車両), and light vehicles are 車両 (Art. 2(1)(viii) and (xi)).
Q. Is a streetcar a 車両?
A. No. Vehicles and streetcars together are called 車両等.
Q. Am I a 車両 when pushing my motorcycle?
A. If you are pushing a two-wheeler with the engine off, you are treated as a pedestrian — except when the engine is running, it has a sidecar, or it is towing something.
Q. What is the difference between 通行止め and 車両通行止め?
A. 通行止め closes the road to pedestrians, vehicles and streetcars. 車両通行止め prohibits vehicles only; pedestrians may still pass.