"It's tough because my school is new, but I'm hoping that it will be really busy for three or four months so I can earn some money and pay my bills." While he was able to conduct the classroom portion of driving instruction online during the pandemic, he hasn't been able to offer in-car lessons since January - until Wednesday. "It will be a problem when the office opens back up."Ījmal Houshahi started a driving school last year in Barrie, Ont., but has struggled due to the pandemic. "It's more of an inconvenience right now because I'm working from home during the pandemic," Hutton said. So he booked the October appointment and does not want to risk cancelling it in hopes of booking something sooner. The 25-year-old also looked all over southern Ontario, but there was nothing to be had. In Burlington, Ont., Kyle Hutton began looking for driving test appointments in late May, but nothing was available until October. "Sadly, I did not pass, took two turns a little too fast and forgot my blinker when parallel parking." "I didn't know if I'd get this chance again so I booked it," he said, despite feeling he didn't have enough practice under his belt. Last week he managed to find a last-minute test spot for the following day in Hamilton. He cancelled it and began logging in hourly. "Do I stick with the December appointment, or do I lose it to risk getting appointments sooner or later," he said. But the system forced him to cancel his December appointment first before he was able to look for new dates. With the ministry adding more time slots on a rolling basis, Beckham wanted to move his appointment up. When he looked again a few days later in Hamilton, there was nothing available until mid-December. He didn't book it, but tried to find appointments closer in time but farther afield.īut nothing was available from Orillia to Owen Sound, Ont. The earliest slot was late September in Hamilton. In early June, when he heard driving tests would resume, he tried to book online. The G2 licence would allow him to drive alone and on highways. He said he didn't think much of getting his G2 licence, which requires a road test, until his company began talking about a return to the office in September. That means he must drive with a passenger who has four years driving experience and cannot drive on highways, among other conditions. He got his G1 or beginner's licence just before COVID-19 took hold last year. The ministry said it will also add six temporary locations and offer road testing seven days a week where demand is highest, namely the Toronto area.īeckham moved home to Hamilton last year during the pandemic because Toronto was too expensive. It recently announced it would hire 167 additional driver examiners, and recruitment is underway with the goal to have everyone on board by September. Last fall it said it would hire 84 temporary driver examiners for its DriveTest centres, and has so far filled 35 of those positions. The ministry said it has invested $16 million to deal with the backlog. The Ministry of Transportation said 421,827 road tests have been cancelled since March 2020 due to pandemic-related lockdowns. The province resumed in-car driving tests on June 14, but the backlog to book a road test is staggering. The 25-year-old said he checked again Wednesday and the earliest slot available is January 2022. Beckham has tried to book a driving test in Ontario so many times he's memorized his 15-digit licence number.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |