Learner drivers from Motueka and Golden Bay are travelling as far as Westport and Ashburton to sit their restricted and full licences, as they contend with long wait times and cancellations at closer testing centres.
Residents have been vocal about their frustration at having delays of several months before the next available spaces at testing centres. They are also questioning why Motueka no longer has a testing centre of its own, to reduce the backlog that causes stress and uncertainty for those who are attempting to sit their licences.
However, New Zealand Transport Authority (NZTA) says that although they are training new staff to relieve the backlog, they can not commit to a timeframe for when Motueka might once again have its own testing centre, or whether it will happen at all.
Motueka’s Bec Lucas-Bryan’s story is similar to those that many people shared with The Guardian. Her son Jack, now 17, went for his restricted licence in Nelson last August, and like about half of first-time testers, failed.
NZTA statistics show that only 56 per cent of people passed their restricted test first time around in the year ending December 2022, and Nelson’s overall pass rate for restricted tests, including resits, was 58 per cent.
This compares to a national figure of 54 per cent for Class 1 car licenses. Blenheim’s overall pass rate for the same test was 61 per cent, and Westport’s 80 per cent.
The family immediately tried to rebook the test for Jack, only to discover that there were no spaces available in Nelson until the following September. They managed to secure a spot in Blenheim for late November, and Bec took a day off work to drive him over. Upon their arrival, they were told that an instructor was sick, and Jack’s test was cancelled.
The next available booking they could find was four months later in early March, in Westport. Bec says that finally last week, with another day off work and a 600km round-trip, he passed.
“This process is crazy,” she summarises.
Jack says it would be beneficial to the youth of Motueka if they could do their practical tests in Motueka – a service that was removed in 2012, when the licensing criteria changed to require a more complex driving environment than Motueka could then offer.
Chris Rodley, national manager – regulatory system design for NZTA, says that at the time, Motueka did not meet requirements around minimum traffic levels, road and intersection layouts, and specific speed zones.
“The restricted licence test was strengthened to reduce the risk to safety posed by and for young and novice drivers. Road crashes are the single biggest killer of teenagers in New Zealand, and our teen crash rates are among the worst in the developed world.”
He says that nationally, eight new driver testing officers have just completed their training, with a further 10 training this month. However, no information was given about where the testing officers might be based.
“Our aim is to target locations where increased access to driver licensing services is most needed and there are a number of locations where access to improved driver licensing services will be reviewed, including Motueka,” he says.
“We are aware of the Motueka community’s desire and need for a practical testing route for Class 1 driving testing, and community views will be taken into account in our review and prioritisation process. However, we cannot currently commit to a timeframe for when a review will be undertaken.”
NZTA’s response isn’t good enough, reckons West Coast/Tasman-based list MP Damien O’Conner, who berated the organisation for its “obstinance and obstruction”.
He says that the delays create pressure on our youth “and lead to too many young people on the wrong side of the law” as they end up driving illegally while they wait months for testing availability.
He says that the Tasman District Council and the Motueka community, including the parents and grandparents of these young drivers, are doing their very best to help youth through the system legally.
