Agenda item

To consider the report of the Head of Public Protection which sets out the results of the six weeks consultation on the proposal to replace the County Council Road Safety Unit Assessment with the Basic Hackney Carriage and Private Hire Driver Assessment from the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA).

The Senior Licensing and Markets Officer introduced the report which presented the results of the six week consultation on the proposal to replace the County Council Road Safety Unit assessment with the Basic Hackney Carriage and Private Hire Driver Assessment from the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA).

He outlined the responses which had been tabulated at paragraph 3.10 of the report and reproduced in full at Appendix 1.

Following the conclusion of his report, the Senior Licensing and Markets Officer answered Mr Ahmed’s question on whether any other local authorities included existing drivers or had introduced an expiry date when adopting the DVSA driver assessment. He confirmed that he had researched other councils that had adopted the DVSA Driver Assessment and stated that he did not find a council which required existing drivers to take the driver assessment or had introduced an expiry date.

Councillor Tracey was advised that 121 Hackney Carriage Drivers, 278 Private Hire Drivers and various disability groups had been consulted on the proposal. She believed that the response was very poor and the Chair and Councillor Brown agreed.

Councillor Witts asked about the differences between the tests and was advised that the County Council test which was a single test had a very low failure rate. The DVSA test had an 85 per cent first time pass rate and was available as basic or enhanced including the wheelchair accessibility, which was also available separately. The test duration was 40 minutes with an additional 12 minutes for the wheelchair accessibility and was currently available at Bristol or Worcester.

The Senior Licensing and Markets Officer advised that should Members adopt the DVSA assessment, the DVSA would make the tests available at Quedgeley although it would take six weeks to train the examiners. He also mentioned that this could be achieved by 1 March 2015.

He advised that the fees were currently as follows:

Basic Assessment

£79.66            weekdays before 16.00hrs

£96.00            weekends and weekdays after 16.00hrs

Enhanced Assessment

£92.94            weekdays before 16.00hrs

£112.34          weekends and weekdays after 16.00hrs

Wheelchair Accessibility

£26.56            weekdays before 16.00hrs

£32.68            weekends and weekdays after 16.00hrs

The Committee agreed that the DVSA basic assessment should be adopted for new and existing drivers. The following points were discussed:-

·         Driving assessment not being something that deals with medical issues of the driver.

·         All drivers have to pass a medical which is repeated annually after 65 years of age.

·         Existing drivers to have passed the assessment within 18 months from 1^st March 2015.

·         Continue to use a requirement to retake and pass the assessment as a disciplinary measure where appropriate.

·         Gloucester City Council to lead the way by imposing a ten year duration on the assessment.

RESOLVED that

1.         The Driving and Vehicle Standards Agency Basic Hackney Carriage and Private Hire Driver Assessment, which will include the wheelchair assessment for drivers of wheelchair accessible vehicles, be adopted for all Hackney Carriage and Private Hire Drivers with effect from 1^st March 2015 with a requirement that existing licensed drivers shall pass the DVSA assessment within eighteen months of that date.

2.         The Council shall continue to use a requirement to retake and pass the required standard of the DVSA assessment as a disciplinary measure where appropriate.

3.         The Driving and Vehicle Standards Agency Hackney Carriage and Private Hire Driver Assessment shall be valid for a period of ten years from the date of the assessment.