SAVE SOUTH SHIELDS DRIVING TEST CENTRE
SAVE SOUTH SHIELDS DRIVING TEST CENTRE
SAVE SOUTH SHIELDS DRIVING TEST CENTRE
PLEASE NOTE - This petition is not asking for donations, any donations requested are for change.org themselves
South Shields Test Centre is under threat of closure by the DVSA, possibly as early as April 2022. It is proposed to relocate South Shields Examiners and test candidates to Sunderland Test Centre.
This will have a massive impact on South Shields
Financial Impact:-
- Longer lessons needed to travel to test areas
- Extra lesson costs to South Tyneside learners estimated at £512k per annum
- Increased waiting lists for Driving Instructors
- Increased waiting list for Driving Tests
- Possibility of skilled Instructors & Examiners leaving the industry – leading to even longer waiting times
- Impact on local businesses, providing goods & services to the instructors in this area
Safety / Accessibility Impact:-
- More parents not prepared to tolerate the extra costs and waiting times, will take the option to teach their kids themselves. This is a familiar and perfectly acceptable practice but closing South Shields Test Centre WILL lead to more vehicles, without dual-controls, driving longer distances, on unfamiliar roads – a safety concern to all road users
- DOUBLE the amount of Learner Drivers for the residents of Sunderland, already thought to be causing congestion
- There is also the question of Accessibility for those candidates who suffer from conditions that make lessons in excess of 1hr impossible. Some of these candidates may never learn to drive if they have to travel out of their area to lessons and tests, which could impact their future independence
- Going from 5 examiners/candidates/Instructors per test, to 8 will remove the ability for effective social distancing at Sunderland Test Centre – against current Government Guidelines
COP 26 / Environmental Impact:-
CRUCIALLY, ALL THIS EXTRA TRAVEL WILL LEAD TO INCREASES IN GLOBAL EMISSIONS, AGAINST COP 26
- Average of 411 grams of CO2 is produced per mile.
- DVSA recommend 45 hours instructor training plus additional 20 hours private practice (1 ½ hr lessons will be required for pupils based in South Shields to take lessons in Sunderland)
- Distance between test centres is 6 miles so 12-mile round trip. 43*12=516 additional miles per learner
- Based on only 100 learners, an additional annual carbon footprint of 212k CO2 will be produced
Please join us in fighting this proposal, keeping our roads safe, and ensuring our present and future learner drivers are allowed to learn in their OWN area, by signing the petition now! Thank you
Join us on Social Media:-
https://www.facebook.com/savesouthshieldstestcentre