Sudbury MPP Jamie West wants to know why Ontario’s plan to use temporary road test centres — set up to deal with a backlog in driving tests — ignores Northern Ontario.
“Doug Ford and his Conservative government once again left Northerners stranded in a drive test backlog,” said West. “Leaving out Northerners from taking their driving tests means they can’t go to work, it means lost wages, lost appointments, and lost opportunities.”
West said none of the nine temporary road test centres are located in the North.
“Will the premier commit to opening additional temporary road test centres in Northern Ontario – including one in my riding of Sudbury so Northerners can get on the road and on with their lives?” West said today in a news release.
As of the end of July, West said Ontario’s data show a backlog of more than 700,000 driving tests, which the temporary testing centres the Minister of Transportation has been announcing since August are set up to deal with.
West told the legislature that people in Sudbury are having to wait a year to get their driving test, he said in a news release.
“Rick is a constituent of mine. His daughter relies on driving to get to university and to work. However, Rick told me she can’t make an appointment for her G-test until Dec. 31, 2022,” said West. “The North is where we use highways to get to work, not subways because we have none. Wait times for drive tests are especially devastating in Northern Ontario.”
