Two Angus driving test centres that were to be closed next month have been given a one-year reprieve following pressure at Westminster.
Angus MP Mike Weir says he has been given an assurance from a senior Driving Standards Agency representative that the Forfar and Arbroath centres will remain open.
A campaign was mounted by a group of driving instructors who claimed they, and their students, stood to lose thousands of pounds if the centres were axed.
Mr Weir had been verbally assured by UK transport under-secretary Mike Penning that the centres would not be shut while the matter was being considered, and that promise has now been cemented.
He said, “The DSA have assured me that the two centres will remain open for at least a year whilst all options are looked at for delivering the service in Arbroath and Forfar. The strong campaign, locally and in Parliament, has clearly forced a major rethink in how the DSA are looking at local test centres and I will be keeping up the pressure to try and ensure that we continue to have testing facilities locally.”
Mr Weir claimed the extension would provide “breathing space” and time for discussion.
A DSA spokeswoman said, “We will be continuing to use the test centres at Arbroath and Forfar for another year while we consider all options for service delivery in that area.”
An online petition has passed the 1500-signature mark and a motion calling for support won backing at last week’s full meeting of Angus Council.U-turnLocal representatives lobbied the DSA and Westminster transport chiefs in an attempt to force a U-turn on the planned closures.
Arbroath councillor David Fairweather helped the instructors’ group to set up meetings and stage a protest outside the test centre in the town last month.
He said, “I’m so delighted that the local elected members got involved and have managed to make such a difference.”
The Angus centres were to close in favour of sending learners to sit exams at a new centre in Dundee. It was previously estimated instructors’ costs could have risen by 15-20% and students would face a 30-40% tuition fee increase.
Instructor Lez Wells, who co-ordinated the campaign against closure, said Mr Weir deserved the gratitude of all his colleagues in the area for taking their cause on board.
He added, “This is singularly the most fantastic outcome we could have had and we all have to thank Mike Weir for fighting our cause and effectively putting his job on the line.”