Ontario to open temporary drive test centres to clear backlog caused by COVID-19
Ontario is opening temporary road test centres to help address a large testing backlog that built up due to pandemic lockdowns.
The province said the centres would open in areas where demand is highest to help more new drivers get their G2 and G licences.
The province resumed in-car driving tests on June 14, but the backlog has left many new drivers struggling to find a test slot. Some have said the first available slots are often months in the future.
The Ministry of Transportation said Wednesday that there is currently a backlog of approximately 700,000 road tests in Ontario.
Transportation Minister Caroline Mulroney said the province is taking action to clear the backlog so that new drivers who need a test "can get one as soon as possible."
"As Ontario continues to head in the right direction in the fight against COVID-19, we have an aggressive plan in place to hire additional temporary driver examiners, open additional centres to offer road testing, and extend weekday operating hours for passenger road testing, including weekends," she said in a statement.
The ministry plans to hire 167 temporary driver examiners to address the backlog, adding to the 84 examiners who were hired in the fall of 2020.
Temporary road test centres will open in Guelph and Oshawa on Monday, while others will open in Toronto, Hamilton/Niagara, Mississauga/Brampton, and York/Durham in September, the province said.
Masks, hand sanitizer and screening questions will be mandatory for tests, vehicle windows must be open to allow airflow and drivers could be required to provide their phone number if contact tracing is needed.
The province said all staff will wear personal protective equipment and examiners would have face shields, sanitizers and seat covers.
The Ministry of Transportation said last month that 421,827 road tests have been cancelled since March 2020 due to pandemic-related lockdowns.
Drivers who had their road tests cancelled due to the pandemic are expected to receive a credit to rebook their exams, the province said.
Starting Monday, the two temporary centres in Guelph and Oshawa will exclusively offer G2 and G road tests daily from 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
The Oshawa site will be open seven days a week while the one in Guelph will only take appointments Monday to Friday and expand operations to seven days a week in November, the province said.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 4, 2021.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Bodies found by U.S. authorities searching for missing B.C. kayakers
United States authorities who have been searching for a pair of missing kayakers from British Columbia since the weekend have recovered two bodies in the nearby San Juan Islands of Washington state.
Amid concerns over 'collateral damage' Trudeau, Freeland defend capital gains tax change
Facing pushback from physicians and businesspeople over the coming increase to the capital gains inclusion rate, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his deputy Chrystia Freeland are standing by their plan to target Canada's highest earners.
'It's discriminatory': Individuals refused entry to Ontario legislature for wearing keffiyeh
Individuals being barred from entering Ontario’s legislature while wearing a keffiyeh say the garment is part of their cultural identity— and the only ones making it political are the politicians banning it.
Tom Mulcair: Park littered with trash after 'pilot project' is perfect symbol of Trudeau governance
Former NDP leader Tom Mulcair says that what's happening now in a trash-littered federal park in Quebec is a perfect metaphor for how the Trudeau government runs things.
Saskatchewan households will continue to receive carbon tax rebate: Trudeau
Households in Saskatchewan will continue to receive Canada Carbon Rebate payments, despite the province refusing to remit the federal carbon price on natural gas, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Tuesday.
'It's just so hard to let it go': Umar Zameer still haunted by death of Toronto police officer
'We hoped for this day, but we were scared that it would not never ever come because it took so long.' That’s what Umar Zameer, the man recently acquitted in the death of a Toronto police officer, told CTV News Toronto in a sit-down interview on Tuesday.
Senate expenses climbed to $7.2 million in 2023, up nearly 30%
Senators in Canada claimed $7.2 million in expenses in 2023, a nearly 30 per cent increase over the previous year.
Canucks goalie Thatcher Demko won't play in Game 2
The Vancouver Canucks will be without all-star goalie Thatcher Demko when they face the Nashville Predators in Game 2 of their first-round playoff series.
Pedestrian, baby injured after stroller struck and dragged by vehicle in Squamish, B.C.
Police say a baby and a pedestrian suffered non-life-threatening injuries after a vehicle struck a baby stroller and dragged it for two blocks before stopping in Squamish, B.C.