DfT launches motoring services review

The Department for Transport (DfT) has launched a consultation on plans to streamline and improve the delivery of motoring services.

The driving test will be overhauled and, in an effort to reduce the shortage of large goods vehicle (LGV) drivers, the application process will be simplified.

BVRLA chief executive Gerry Keaney said: “We think that now is a good time to take stock of where the DVLA and DVSA are, and how they can best meet motorists’ needs in what is a rapidly changing automotive environment.”

However, he noted: “It is no coincidence that this latest plan for ‘innovative and streamlined’ motoring services comes at a time when the department is under pressure to deliver huge budget cuts for the Treasury.

“We trust that these improvements will deliver efficiencies for the motoring agencies and their customers, as promised.”

He continued: “It’s been a momentous few years for the motoring agencies, which have undergone a radical transformation that has seen them merge operations, shed jobs and get to grips with their archaic IT systems.

“The elimination of the tax disc and the driver licence counterpart were very high profile, but they have been just two results from the DVLA’s plans to replace paperwork and bureaucracy with efficient digital services.

“In many cases, these changes are bringing huge administrative and cost savings to fleets. But not always. Some of the changes have been rushed through and poorly communicated, with too little attention paid to the needs of the fleet sector.”

For further analysis of the proposed changes, see next week’s Fleet News.