DoE denies shortage of driving examiners
Page 20
If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.
MANCHESTER hgv test centres are not short of examiners, and the maximum notice for a test place is 10 days, according to the DoE in London.
This statement to CM follows our story in July 26 issue when Jack Woods, manager of the Manchester Transport Training Association, said that although he was capable of turning out 2,400 drivers a year there were bottlenecks at the test centres and until they were cleared it would be useless to expand the number of training places.
Said the DoE: "The training organizations apparently prefer to book training places for either Monday or Friday and it is just impossible to fit everyone in on these two days." There was ample spare capacity on the other three days of the week and they could cope with any demand made on the centres provided these days were used.
Mr Wood agreed that training associations did use Monday and Friday almost exclusively for test purposes because these days coincided with the end of training periods. "I have put up a scheme to the Training Board asking for four additional vehicles and 13
additional instructors, which would allow me to increase my training places from 20 to 32 a week," he said.
The Manchester scheme would mean that 16 drivers would start their course on a Monday and a further 16 on a Wednesday every week. Those who started on a Monday would be tested at the end of the course two weeks later, on either the Friday or the Monday. The Wednesday starters would be tested on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, Thursday would be kept available for retesting.
According to Mr Wood, the scheme has been commended by the local Department of Employment and regional training officer who are organizing the Government's Training Opportunity Scheme — TOPS.
A spokesman for the RTITB said that unless an increase in training places could be justified by showing that extra drivers were
required, there was no point in producing 2,400 drivers at a centre. Group Training Associations were at liberty to apply to increase the establishment at any time and the Training Board would decide each application on its merits. The GTAs had been advised that they could stag-ger their course starting dates at their own discretion.
The situation still is, however, a shortfall of 40,000 hgv drivers and it seems that at least one training officer if not more has found a solution to the problem because according to the DoE there are many more applicants for training . under the TOPS scheme than there are training places available.