Ruislip & Eastcote & Northwood Gazette
Testing time for worried driving instructor
HE SAYS MOVING TEST CENTRE FROM HAYES TO YEADING IS UNSAFE
A DRIVING instructor has called for the Hayes Driver Testing Centre to be saved from closure, saying the closest alternative is in an area that isn’t safe for learners.
Tests that were previously taken at the Hayes centre will now be shifted to the nearby Yeading centre due to the lease expiring at the Hayes venue.
Paul Kerr says he has been working in Hayes as a driving instructor for 36 years, and said the Willow Tree Roundabout at Yeading makes driving tests in the area dangerous.
In 2015, the Willow Tree roundabout was named one of the five most dangerous in West London, with Department for Transport figures showing 17 accidents and 21 injuries between 2010 and 2014.
Mr Kerr said in Hayes, instructors were given a chance to gauge their testee’s ability before they got onto too busy a main road.
He said: “If the examiner decided it was too unsafe to continue they will have had time to assess that and stop the test.”
This isn’t the case for Yeading where participants hit the
Willow Tree Roundabout almost immediately.
“It’s no more than 50 to 100 yards from the test centre gate.
“There’s no other way, you have to go straight onto Willow Tree Roundabout,” he said.
The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) currently regularly uses Willow Tree Roundabout during tests, and said there have been no reported incidents during a test in recent years.
But Mr Kerr has called on the DVSA to save the existing Hayes testing centre, and even set up a petition online.
DVSA operations manager, Rowland Williams, said the move was prompted by the lease at the Hayes driving test centre expiring in October.
He said: “DVSA will move existing tests and driving examiners to nearby Yeading Goods Vehicle Testing Station (GVTS), which is already used to conduct driving tests.
On the roundabout, Mr Williams said it is vital that learners are prepared to drive safely on all types of road before taking their test.
“We encourage learners to spend time practising on a variety of roads and in different driving conditions,” he said.
“DVSA’s priority is to help everyone through a lifetime of safe driving.”
Yeading GVTS is 3.6 miles from Hayes.