Driving test centre to close

Kidderminster's driving test centre is to be closed this Autumn as part of a shake-up in the West Midlands, it was announced today.

The Driving Standards Agency has been reviewing the future of the centre in Castle Road which will now shut its doors for good because it does not come up to scratch by modern-day standards.

Learner drivers in Kidderminster, Stourport, Bewdley and surrounding areas will now have to travel to Lower Gornal, Redditch or Worcester to take their tests.

The five staff driving examiners based at Kidderminster and two based at an out-station at Ludlow will also be relocated to these centres.

Officials had been considering improving the existing facilities, transferring them to alternative premises in the town or merging them with another centre within a 20-mile radius of Kidderminster.

Ray Colesby, a spokesman for the Driving Standards Agency, said: "Although the actual date of the closure of the centre is not yet known this could happen in October or November.

"Because we believe many candidates will choose to take their test in Lower Gornal this is being refurbished.

"The closure of the Kidderminster centre should not disadvantage anyone. I have spoken to staff at the centre and have told them we will be looking to relocate them to one of the other three centres.

"It will mean driving instructors may have to reconsider the routes on which they take candidates and travelling to a centre may take a little longer."

The decision to close the centre has come as a shock to councillor Julian Phillips, who represents Bewdley and Arley on Wyre Forest District Council, and who said he was "upset by the decision".

He said: "The closure will mean it will be even more expensive than ever to learn to drive if they have to take their test in another area."