VANCOUVER -- ICBC is adding new road test appointments after the shutdown during the COVID-19 pandemic created a back-log of drivers waiting for tests.
The corporation shut down its testing centres in mid-March, leaving many new and learning drivers without the option of graduating to the next level of their driver’s license.
“ICBC has added a total of 2,000 road test appointments for testing dates starting September 9,” the insurer said in a statement.
“As new driver examiners complete training, ICBC will make more road test appointments available for booking online,” it continued.
In the coming weeks, the institution says it will add 6,000 extra driving test slots, the majority of which will be at road test centres in Metro Vancouver.
As of publishing this article, the current wait time for a Class 5 driving exam in Vancouver is more than four months long.
In its response to the pandemic, ICBC also says it has been offering priority testing for “essential health care workers and first responders who require a license for work.”
This year, ICBC says that “passing rates” have “significantly improved.” However, to help cut down on wait times for others, it’s urging drivers to come prepared.
“Take the time to practice so that (you) can avoid the possibility of having to wait for another road test, and adding to the current customer wait time,” reads the statement.
According to its tracking, passing rates last year were 50 per cent, but this year it’s up by eight per cent.
Other COVID-19 changes at the province’s car insurance corporation include waiving the knowledge test fee for drivers whose learner’s license expired before they could take their road test, and “retrofitting stations so that they can meet physical distancing requirements, in addition to extending hours of operation at select locations in coming weeks.”
