Mike PenningOn 27th April 2009 the DSAs new MPTCs (Multi-Purpose Test Centres) effectively went live with the introduction of the new off-road section of the motorcycle test (swerve test). On December 20th 2010, the Transport Minister, Mike Penning announced plans to trial an alternative on-road test, thus making MPTCs obsolete. So what went wrong?
Back in the summer of 2005, the DSA announced in their publication “Despatch” that plans were afoot to introduce changes to the motorcycle test in line with the Second EU Driving Licence Directive, which they expected to be implemented in October 2008.
A section of this new EU directive required the candidate to reach a speed of at least 50kph (approx 31mph) before swerving and stopping their machine under control.
As this exercise could not be performed legally on UK roads that are subject to a 30mph speed limit, the conclusion was reached that brand new testing sites needed to be constructed to allow the manoeuvre to be carried out off-road. And so the idea of the MPTC was born.
Not everyone agreed. The cost of such a proposal was clearly going to be an issue. Concerns were voiced by many (such as the British Motorcycle Federation, Motorcycle Industry Association, instructors, the press, etc) who asked the question “Why not simply obtain derogation from the EU directive to permit the test to be carried out at 30mph?”
The same people were also asking if there would be enough MPTCs to make the test readily accessible for all, as well as raising concerns over the test itself.
Is it right that a novice rider using a basic, small motorcycle should be required to reach speeds of over 30mph before having to simultaneously swerve and brake in a compound with limited space, and no allowance being made for the prevailing weather conditions? Is it safe to do such a thing? After all, instructors have been teaching new motorcyclists to avoid getting themselves into situations where their best option would be to swerve and brake at the same time. Especially if you happen to be travelling faster than the urban speed limit.
Another problem now reared its head. The DSA made clear its intentions to close many of the old local test centres when the MPTCs became functional.
In some areas this would mean that both car and motorcycle candidates would no longer benefit from a test centre within easy reach. They would instead be required to travel considerable distances in order to take their tests in an unfamiliar town.
The DSA met stiff resistance to its plans. Petitions and demonstrations were organised. Protests were launched, often with MPs, instructor groups and local councils lending their full support.
In fairness, the DSA did listen. Consultations were launched and questions were asked in the Commons. The Agency also took the opportunity to remind all those concerned that it was actually under no obligation to act on its consultations. Eventually it was decided that Harry G Selfridge got it all wrong when he declared that "The customer is always right" and the decision was taken that DSA customers would instead be best served by closing selected test centres across the UK, as originally intended.
The date was now set to roll out the new test on 29th September 2008, but this was put back to 30th March 2009. Not because the DSA wanted time to address concerns but because many of the new MPTCs had simply not yet been built. The date was pushed back yet again, finally going live on 27th April 2009, although the lack of operational MPTCs throughout the UK was still a problem for many.
27th April was also the day that saw the first reports of candidates injuring themselves as they attempted to perform the new swerve test. The MPTC in Rotherham started conducting the new tests in torrential rain and soon witnessed its first crash on that very same day. Undeterred, the tests continued, only to have another candidate crash only minutes later.
Reports of broken bones were not uncommon. A teenage girl who was taking the test in Chester crashed so badly that her father (who had turned up to show moral support) had initially thought that she had been killed. Demand for the new test dropped dramatically as fears over safety grew.
Media coverage was now gathering pace. Damning stories kept appearing on the TV and in the national press. Our own chairman, Barry Kenward was one of those whose comments were regularly being quoted in newspaper and BBC reports.
Ministers decided to act. On 28th July 2009 it was announced by the government that the Commons Transport Select Committee were to launch an investigation.
On 23rd March 2010, the Committee published its conclusions which did nothing to spare the blushes of DSA senior staff.
The report branded the DSA as “slow” and “dogmatic” and described their decisions as “unjustifiable” and “bungled” and noted that millions of pounds had been wasted. The report went on to state that the DSA “needed to give a much greater priority to customer service” and also pointed out that not one other EU country had found it necessary to build such sites simply to accommodate the new test.
In June 2010, Mike Penning declared that the current test would be reviewed and on 20th December he hammered home the final nail in the off-road test’s coffin when he announced that new trials would take place for the motorcycle test to be carried out on the public road.
The future of the MPTC’s is still undecided. There are rumours that the off-road areas will be mothballed, sold, used for parking or even host the occasional boot sale. Some suggest that MPTCs should be scrapped in favour of going back to the old style local test centre.
Whatever happens, let’s hope that in the future the DSA decides to listen to the concerns of what it refers to as its stakeholders and never again leaves itself open to accusations of “bungling”.
Written by Si Lowes - DIDU Area Rep for East London & Essex
07.02.2011
Related links
- House of Commons Transport Committee Sixth Report: The new European motorcycle test
Two quotes from the report:
"It is difficult to see why the Government failed to obtain a derogation from the 50 km/h speed requirement for certain elements of the Module 1 test. Testing riders at a speed which exceeds the standard limit in built-up areas is both inconvenient and confusing for candidates."
"The justification for the introduction of Multi Purpose Test Sites (MPTCs) is weak. It has not enabled the DSA to make significant savings, and only a very small capital gain has been realised. Instead, it appears to have caused significant cost and inconvenience to test candidates and trainers, with little apparent gain. The way in which the DSA weighted the convenience of consumers relative to other considerations was flawed."
- BBC News: New motorbike test is under fire
Our Chairman, Barry, is quoted in this article: "In the dry the test is fine but the stopping distance is not enough for the stop to be carried out safely when it is wet. I have been riding for 30 years and I would not want to do the test they have to do."
- The Telegraph: New motorcycle test centres 'bungled'
- The Scotsman: Plans set to privatise all driving tests
