Concern at test centres closure

Learners will face higher lesson bills to cover travel to Bangor

The closure of two driving test centres in north west Wales has been criticised by driving instructors.

The centres at Holyhead on Anglesey and Colwyn Bay, Conwy, will close as part of a UK-wide upgrade.

Instructors in Holyhead and Colwyn Bay claim the closures will put pupils, who will have to travel to Bangor or Rhyl to be tested, at a disadvantage.

The Driving Standard Agency (DSA) said it was part of an UK-wide multi-million pound investment.

The closure of the two centres is part of an upgrade which will also see the current Bangor test centre being relocated in the city to accommodate a new motorbike test coming into force in September.

Chris Lee, from the DSA, said: "Negotiations for a new centre at Bangor are going on now as part of a multi-million pound investment across England, Wales and Scotland.

Number of car driving tests 2006/07 Bangor - 2,756 Colwyn Bay - 2,454 Holyhead - 1,060 Source: DSA

"We are having to look at 66 new sites to enable us to accommodate the new bike tests," she said.

Holyhead driving test centre is set to close on 16 May, but no date has been set yet for the closure of Colwyn Bay.

Trefor Hughes, a driving instructor with Christopher's Driving School in Holyhead for 48 years, said the move was "very disappointing".

"Bangor is 21 miles away from here and it will take at least 20 minutes, maybe longer for a learner, to get there, so it will need more than the one hour lesson," he said.

Robert Bradburn from Bay Driving School in Colwyn Bay said the closure of the town's centre was "not good for pupils".

The current centre at Bangor will close and another opened

Mr Bradburn said he was concerned about the logistics of trying to get through traffic along the A55 to reach Bangor for a lesson or test.

Rhyl - the next nearest centre along the coast from Colwyn Bay - was equally difficult to get to because of heavy traffic, he added.

"It puts learner drivers from around here at a disadvantage," he said.

Frank Price, the local chairman of the Driving Instructors Association, who also runs a driving school in Colwyn Bay said: "We are all worried about the pupils.

"They will end up having to double up on lessons just because it takes so long to get to the test centres."