Updated: Driving tests to be impacted by strike action in December and January

The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) is warning that some driving examiners, who are members of the Public and Commercial Services (PCS) union, are planning to take strike action during December and January.

The strike action is part of national industrial action by the PCS union over pay, pensions, jobs and redundancy terms.

The strikes will affect driving test centres in different parts of Great Britain at different times.

The North-East of England and Scotland will be affected from December 13-18; the North-West England and Yorkshire and the Humber from December 19-24; the East of England, East Midlands and West Midlands from December 28-31 and on January 3; and London, south-east England, south-west England and Wales from January 4-10.

The PCS union has told DVSA the strike action will affect driving examiners employed at the driving test centres listed below.

Tests might also be affected at other driving test centres that are not listed. DVSA will not know this until the day of the strike action.

North-east England and Scotland

These areas include these test centres:

Aberdeen North, Aberdeen South (Cove), Airdrie, Ayr, Bishopbriggs, Blyth, Darlington, Darlington LGV, Dumfries, Dundee, Durham, Edinburgh (Currie), Edinburgh (Musselburgh), Elgin, Gateshead, Glasgow (Anniesland), Glasgow (Baillieston), Glasgow (Shieldhall), Gosforth, Grangemouth, Greenock, Hamilton, Hartlepool, Inverness (Seafield Road), Irvine, Kilmarnock LGV, Kirkcaldy, Livingston, Middlesborough, Paisley, Perth (Arran Road), Peterhead, Stirling and Sunderland.

Tests at other driving test centres in these areas might also be affected.

North-west England and Yorkshire and the Humber

These areas include these test centres:

Atherton (Manchester), Barnsley, Barrow In Furness, Beverley LGV, Blackburn with Darwen, Blackpool, Bolton (Manchester), Bradford (Heaton), Bradford (Thornbury), Bredbury (Manchester), Bridlington, Bury (Manchester), Carlisle, Carlisle LGV, Chadderton, Cheetham Hill (Manchester), Chester, Chorley, Crewe, Doncaster, Grimsby Coldwater, Halifax, Heckmondwike, Heysham, Horsforth, Huddersfield, Hull, Kendal (Oxenholme Road), Knaresborough, Leeds, Macclesfield, Nelson, Norris Green (Liverpool), Northallerton, Pontefract, Preston, Rochdale (Manchester), Rotherham, Sale (Manchester), Scarborough, Scunthorpe, Sheffield (Handsworth), Sheffield (Middlewood Road), Southport (Liverpool), Speke (Liverpool), St Helens (Liverpool), Steeton, Upton, Wakefield, Wallasey, Walton LGV, Warrington, West Didsbury (Manchester), Widnes (Liverpool), Workington and York.

Tests at other driving test centres in these areas might also be affected.

East of England, East Midlands, West Midlands and parts of London

These areas include these test centres:

Ashfield, Barking (Tanner Street), Barnet (London), Basildon, Birmingham (Garretts Green), Birmingham (Kings Heath), Birmingham (Kingstanding), Birmingham (Shirley), Birmingham (South Yardley), Birmingham (Sutton Coldfield), Bishops Stortford, Borehamwood (London), Boston, Brentwood (London), Burton on Trent, Bury St Edmunds, Buxton, Cambridge (Brookmount Court), Chelmsford (Hanbury Road), Chesterfield, Colchester, Derby (Alvaston), Dudley, Featherstone, Goodmayes (London), Hinckley, Hornchurch (London), Ipswich, Kettering, Kings Lynn, Leicester (Cannock Street), Leicester (Wigston), Leighton Buzzard (Stanbridge Road), Letchworth, Lichfield, Lincoln, Loughborough, Loughton (London), Lowestoft (Mobbs Way), Ludlow, Northampton, Norwich (Jupiter Road), Norwich (Peachman Way), Nottingham (Chilwell), Nottingham (Colwick), Nuneaton, Peterborough, Peterborough LGV, Redditch, Rugby, Shrewsbury, Southend-on-Sea, St Albans, Stafford, Stoke on Trent (Cobridge), Stoke on Trent (Newcastle under Lyme), Telford, Tilbury, Warwick (Wedgenock House), Watford, Watnall, Wednesbury, Weedon LGV, Wolverhampton, Worcester and Worksop.

Tests at other driving test centres in these areas might also be affected.

London, south-east England, south-west England and Wales

These areas include these test centres:

Ashford (Kent), Aylesbury, Banbury, Bangor, Barnstaple, Belvedere (London), Bletchley, Bodmin, Bridgend, Bristol (Avonmouth), Bristol (Brislington), Bristol (Kingswood), Bromley (London), Burgess Hill, Caernarfon LGV, Camborne , Canterbury, Cardiff (Llanishen), Carmarthen, Cheltenham, Chertsey (London), Chichester, Chingford (London), Chippenham, Crawley, Dorchester, Eastbourne, Enfield (Brancroft Way), Enfield (Innova Business Park), Erith (London), Exeter , Exeter LGV, Farnborough, Folkestone, Gillingham, Gillingham LGV, Gloucester, Greenford (London), Guildford, Hastings (Ore), Hendon (London), Herne Bay, Hither Green (London), Isleworth (Fleming Way), Lancing, Launceston, Lee On The Solent, Llanelli, Llantrisant, Maidstone, Merthyr Tydfil, Mill Hill (London), Monmouth, Morden (London), Newbury (Hambridge Lane), Newport (Gwent), Newport (Isle Of Wight), Newton Abbot, Oxford (Cowley), Pembroke Dock, Pinner (London), Plymouth, Plymouth LGV, Poole, Portsmouth, Reading, Rhyl, Sevenoaks, Sidcup (London), Slough (London), Southall (London), Southampton (Maybush), Southampton LGV, Swansea, Swindon, Taunton, Tolworth (London), Tottenham, Tunbridge Wells, Uxbridge (London), Wanstead (London), Weston-Super-Mare, Winchester, Wood Green (London), Wrexham, Wrexham LGV and Yeading (London).

Tests at other driving test centres in these areas might also be affected.

More test centres impacted by strike action

The PCS union has since told DVSA the strike action will now affect driving examiners employed at more driving test centres.

For the strike action from Wednesday, December 28, to Saturday, December 31, and Tuesday, January 3, this could now also affect Coventry, Grantham (Somerby) and Stevenage.

For the strike action from Wednesday, January 4, to Tuesday, January 10, this could now also affect Aberystwyth (Park Avenue), Basingstoke, Cardigan and Yeovil.

Wherever industrial action is taking place, the DVSA says that it might affect: car driving tests; motorcycle tests; lorry, bus, coach and minibus driving tests; tractor or specialist vehicle driving test; and approved driving instructor (ADI) part 2 (driving ability) or part 3 (instructional ability) tests.

Driving tests with private test providers will not be affected by the strike action. This includes some: Driver CPC part 3a (off-road exercise) tests and Driver CPC part 4 (practical demonstration) tests.

Theory tests are not affected by the strike action and will be taking place as planned.

For more information from the DVSA on the industrial action, click here.