Urban learner drivers are booking slots at rural test centres to beat driving test backlog

According to the Driver and Vehicles Standards Agency (DVSA), learner drivers from urban areas are strategically booking their driving tests in rural locations to bypass the extensive backlog in cities. This practice has resulted in rural residents being left at a disadvantage, as test slots become scarce in their own areas. The Chief Executive of DVSA highlighted this issue while addressing the Transport Select Committee. The Countryside Alliance had previously raised concerns about the substantial backlog, which forced learners in rural regions to travel long distances of up to 70 miles to take their tests, in order to avoid a three-month waiting period.

Research conducted by the Countryside Alliance in January revealed the extent of the problem. Candidates seeking quicker test dates had to resort to online cancellation services, where they found that individuals residing in Swanage, Dorset, had to travel 71 miles to Portsmouth for a test within a week. Similarly, learners in Brecon, Powys, faced a 54-mile journey to Bridgend for a test scheduled nine weeks later.

Initially, the DVSA dismissed these figures and concerns. At the time, a spokesperson for the DVSA cited the pandemic as being a likely cause of delay, adding that extensive efforts were made to recruit almost 500 examiners, with plans for further recruitment.

In today’s Daily Telegraph however, the DVSA has formally acknowledged the problem. Loveday Ryder, the Chief Executive of the DVSA, informed MPs that urban learners were increasingly reserving test slots at rural centres to avoid the substantial delays experienced in their own areas. A situation the Alliance had put to them at the beginning of the year. 

Ryder explained that learners, by booking slots in distant locations, increase their chances of securing cancellations through apps that utilize "online bots" to monitor and claim available slots. This phenomenon has had an adverse impact on rural centres, as learners not originally from those areas attempt to secure cancellations in more urbanized regions.

The Daily Telegraph report highlights the ongoing challenges faced by learner drivers across the country, with record-long waiting times for tests. On average, learners experience a 17-week gap between booking and taking their tests. Urban test centres, such as those in London, Bristol, Glasgow, and Manchester, face even longer delays, with learners waiting up to 24 weeks.

These prolonged waiting periods are largely attributed to the backlog created by the Covid pandemic and subsequent lockdowns, which resulted in the cancellation of approximately one million tests. Greg Smith, MP for the rural constituency of Buckingham, expressed his concern, stating that he receives reports on a weekly basis of local residents enduring waits of over six months at nearby test centres.

Sarah Lee, Director of Policy at the Countryside Alliance said:

"We are pleased to see that the problem facing rural learner drivers has at least been recognised. The ability to drive for those who live in the countryside is vital, particularly given public transport remains limited. We will continue to raise awareness of the growing problems faced by those in rural areas who cannot access a local test centre and push the DVSA to fix the backlog swiftly. We need to get the countryside moving again”.