How hard is it really to get your driver's license in Northland? Well, that depends on who you are and where you live. Photo / 123RF
How hard is it really to get your driver's license in Northland? Well, that depends on who you are and where you live. Photo / 123RF
Northlanders are waiting around or missing out altogether on getting a driver's license due to few and far between testing across the region.
While work is underway to improve Northland's driver licensing system, it's proving to be an uphill battle against inequity to reach the road to zero.
There arefive places in Northland where you can sit your driver licensing theory test to obtain a learners plate: AA Dargaville, AA Kaitaia, VTNZ Kerikeri, VTNZ Whangārei and AA Whangārei.
However, Northlanders can only sit a practical driver's licence test (Restricted or Full) at AA Kaitaia, VTNZ Kerikeri and VTNZ Whangārei.
Northland Road Safety Trust Road Safety education manager Ashley Johnston has 10 years of policing experience. Johnston said traffic-related incidents were often the beginning of someone's criminal record.
"Not having a driver's licence is a gateway into the justice system.''
Travelling long distances to reach the nearest test location is just one of the barriers Northlanders face in booking a driver licensing test.
"Licensing is something that comes as a bit of a privilege and we don't realise how hard it can be for some of the groups in our community to have access to that, let alone access to a vehicle that's fully registered, fully warranted,'' Johnston said.
The list of pre-requisites to get a license are numerous, while the flow-on effects of not having one can be lifelong.
"Employment opportunities are drastically reduced due to not having a driver's licence."
Roadsafe Northland's Ashley Johnston wants driving training incorporated into the school system. Photo / Supplied.
The Road Safety Trust holds multiple community-based driver licensing support programmes, including two in high schools.
"In my opinion, everyone should be finishing high school with a driver's licence," Johnston said.
A step towards achieving this would be incorporating driver theory into the school curriculum, Johnston suggests.
"We do what we can with the system we have currently – is this the best system to support those in our community? No, a lot needs to improve," Johnston said.
Having testing stations so far and few between is a big issue for learners who then have to drive on roads they're not familiar with, Far North District Council deputy mayor Ann Court said.
"I see the government talking about making public transport free so we can get students moving without the need to take a car and that's great, but I want the same opportunity for the people that live in rural and provincial New Zealand who don't get access to public transport."
Court said the recommended 200 hours of driving practice for a learner driver is unrealistic for working parents, especially with the rising cost of petrol.
"It would be in the 1000s of dollars if you did everything strictly according to the book."
Far North District Council Deputy Mayor Ann Court is on the District Licensing Comittee. Photo / Supplied.
Learner drivers often end up with cheaper, unsafe cars, a standard that Court would like to see reversed.
"You're putting your kids on the road at the most vulnerable time in their lives in a barely legal vehicle that's probably not five-star safety rated."
"If you're such a good driver at your age, perhaps you should swap with your child and give them your five-star safety-rated car and you should drive their s***box!".
The worsening obstacles to getting a driver's license were recognised by the government in Parliament in June.
"Since 2020, the driver licensing system has faced a number of challenges that have resulted in increasing wait times. For example, in-car testing was paused during COVID-19 lockdowns in 2020 and 2021, resulting in backlogs," Minister of Transport Michael Wood said.
"The ability to reduce these backlogs has been constrained by insufficient Driver Testing Officer (DTO) capacity nationwide."
Mobile Driver Testing services are provided through driver licensing services partners Vehicle Testing NZ (VTNZ) and the Automobile Association (AA). Photo / Tania Whyte
Wood highlighted Northland, along with Auckland and Gisborne as the most affected areas by the issue.
"Waka Kotahi is also looking at how DTOs are recruited and trained, and is trialling community-based and led driver testing services," Wood said.
Wood said regional trials are being conducted in Northland to understand the viability of setting up community-based and driver-led testing services.
"I'm really encouraged about the fact that the government has listened to us and provided money and there's a program that's intended to (help)," said Northland Road Safety Trust chairman John Williamson.
"I believe there's been some real progress made and most particularly with the pilot, which has been to get more testing in rural areas... in the Far North."
