ICBC road tests will now be 35 minutes long, not 45

As of July 3, road tests in B.C. will be 10 minutes shorter at 35 minutes, not 45.

ICBC announced the change on its website saying the length of Class 7 and Class 5 road tests will be reduced, which will allow for increased road test capacity by 22 per cent.

It says the shortened test will reduce the number of “redundant manoeuvers.”

Hazard perception in Class 7 road tests will be completed as part of the general drive and not part of the parking manoeuvre but parallel parking and backing manoeuvers have not changed.

Jerry Boal, North Vancouver Driver Licensing office manager, told Global News the changes were made to meet the public’s demands.

“A lot of different jurisdictions throughout Canada, including provinces like Ontario, Quebec, Saskatchewan, have road test less than 35 minutes,” he said, “and we wanted to make sure that our standards met those same standards.”

“We’ve been able to remove some redundancies in the road test, such as left turns (and) intersection throughs… We’ve also been able to remove some parking maneuvers that (were) redundant.”

Boal said the integrity of the test has not been affected “at all.”

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However, some critics say that shortening the test is not the right way to go.

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“Number one is they’re taking time away from a test,” Trevor Halford, MLA for Surrey-White Rock and shadow minister for Transportation and Infrastructure, ICBC and Affordability, BC Transit and Sport told Global News Tuesday.

“We’re actually seeing a 50 per cent failure rate right now, so why they would take 10 minutes off the test doesn’t make a lot of sense to me. That seems like it’s a resourcing issue at ICBC and they’re doing that on the back of new drivers, which is very unfortunate.”

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However, Rainiel DeGuzman, owner of RainCity Driving School, told Global News he thinks reducing the length of the road test is a good compromise.

“So normally, especially in the summertime, ICBC has about three to six months of a queue. So it’s very hard to get a road test, especially when they say that after failing a road test, you can take one about two weeks later. It’s going to take you about three months to six months to find another test date,” he said.

DeGuzman said taking 10 minutes off the test time shouldn’t affect too many drivers getting their licence.

“I think some of the things that they’re talking about, like the hazard perception during the manoeuvre section where they ask you to pull over and then they ask you what the hazards are, they’re going to try to make it so that you’re driving and you’re being asked what the hazards are. So that should make it a little bit more efficient, although a little bit more difficult,” he added.

DeGuzman said he is able to get his students to do all of the maneuvers required in about 20 minutes and he is able to do an assessment in about 20 minutes.

“If you’re well-prepared for the test, it’s ample amount of time,” he said. “But if you’re not prepared for the test, then it’s definitely going to show.”