Concerns over plans to move Derry MOT centre out of Newbuildings

There are conserned at proposals to relocate two vehicle test centres in Derry There are are plans to close the main MOT test centre in the city relocate it to a new site. The main test centre is currently located at Newbuildings Industrial Estate which caters for a wide range of vehicles, including buses, heavy goods vehicles (HGV) and cars. The centre also caters for practical driving tests such as the taxi driver test, as well as verbal testing and practical demonstrations for buses and lorries. There is an additional test centre located at the Glenaden Complex at Altnagelvin Industrial Estate in the Waterside. However, no vehicle tests are carried out at this centre, which caters only for practical driving tests for both cars and motorcycles. The Glenaden complex is also used as a setting out point for those taking their driving test, after this ceased at Waterside House on Duke Street a number of years ago. However, the Derry News has learned that both of these facilities have been earmarked for closure, with the functions of both facilities to be centralised at a new site in Campsie. The new site has now been identified and will boast a larger capacity for vehicle testing than the current site in Newbuildings, particularly in regards to large vehicles. The Derry News first learned of the plans to close the Newbuildings site last month, after the Department of Infrastructure (DfI), which oversees the Driver and Vehicle Agency (DVA). A spokesperson for the DfI said there was an “ncreasing demand for testing services” in Derry and across the North, adding that the DVA “was currently reviewing how best to meet this growing demand.” Last week, after being contacted by the Derry News, the DfI then issued another response, in which it confirmed that it was looking at ‘alternative sites’ in order to increase its capacity to cope with the rising demand for tests. “The Driver and Vehicle Agency is currently reviewing how best to increase capacity across the entire network of test centres,” a spokesperson said. “This includes looking at alternative sites to ensure the Agency can meet the growing demand for tests. “At this stage in the process, it is too early to confirm the location of any future test centres.” However, concerns have now been raised by one local driving instructor about the impact the relocation will have on driving tests. The instructor, who did wish to be named, said the location of the new site in Campsie would reduce the effectiveness of the test in its current form. “The switch to Campsie has been on the cards for a while, and while it might be better for testing vehicles, it could have consequences for the driving tests,” he said “At the minute, people taking the test set out from the Altnagelvin Industrial Estate and take the test as usual in and around the Waterside,” he said. “Now, if you’re setting out from Campsie, it could take you 20 minutes before you even get back into the city to start the test, and if you’re test is at ten to four on a Friday, then it will be well over that, so that’s going to have an effect on the test in a big way.”