Press Release |
For Immediate Release April 15, 2010
Stop Flea Market Driver’s Licences
(Queen’s Park) PC Transportation Critic Frank Klees today called on the Premier to put an end to the issuing of what he called “Ontario's Flea Market Driver’s Licences.”
Klees accused the government of allowing road safety to be compromised by turning a blind eye to novice drivers who travel to remote areas of the province to take their road tests. “Road tests are intended to test a driver’s ability to cope with the prevailing conditions that would normally be encountered. To allow this practice to continue makes a mockery of our licencing system,” said Klees.
"Apparently everyone except the Premier and the Minister of Transportation seems to understand that what's going on here is not only wrong, it's a threat to the safety of every motorist who ends up on the same road with these drivers who bought their "free pass" licences," said Klees. "This is about protecting the integrity of Ontario's licencing system.”
The solution according to Klees, is to restrict Drive Test Centres to administer tests to applicants who live within a defined geographic area of that testing centre.
"Not only would a geographic restriction stop this sleazy practice, it would ensure that people are tested under the same driving conditions they'll be experiencing on a daily basis," said Klees.
The geographic restrictions would also solve the problem of lengthy wait lists at local Drive Test Centres. “Whether in Aurora, or other smaller communities, local residents are finding themselves competing for appointments with applicants from Toronto and other communities where it may be more difficult to pass a test or to get an appointment.
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References:
Frank Klees, MPP
416 509 8999
Article in The Star by Rob Ferguson April 15, 2010