'I traveled 1,000 miles for driving test because none were available nearby'
A student has had to pay £150 in travel costs after she was forced to travel up to Scotland from south England - in order to undertake a driving test.
Windsor resident Emily Doyle, 22, had to travel all the way up to Aberdeen from Windsor to take her driving test, after she had been trying to book it at home for months. When it became clear she couldn’t get one in her home of Berkshire, she had to look elsewhere.
Her mother Audrey, 50, is from Aberdeen, so they decided to look for a test up there. Thankfully they were able to successfully book one, and Emily passed the test with six minors.
Despite being an overall success, the trip did make a major dent in their pockets. On top of the cost of £62 for a test - as well as £23 for the theory test she had previously done - the pair had to spend £150 just on the fuel to get there.
But Emily is nonetheless “really relieved” after passing - and says the first thing she did was drive straight up to university. “I think that it paid off,” she added. “I could have been waiting a year or more for a test near home. I think that it was worth it – but it was a lot of planning and time.”
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The pair had to travel from Windsor all the way up to Aberdeen (Audrey Doyle / SWNS)Audrey believes there was “no alternative” even if what they were forced to do was “very extreme”. She said: “We have been trying to get a test since April and we couldn’t even get a booking or secure a date. We’ve been on the [booking] site when it opens at 6am and Emily bought an app to book cancelled tests.”
“But we’ve never been able to secure a date even six months to a year ahead,” Audrey continued, according to the Metro. “You just can’t secure the dates. It’s very frustrating and very extreme – but Emily was determined to take her test.”
The pair didn’t waste their trip, and spent a week in Aberdeen from October 22 to 29. What should have been a relaxing week, stopping off in Edinburgh and carrying on up to Aberdeen, turned into turmoil as they faced the flooding aftermath of Storm Babet and were forced to take a large detour.
Although it was all worth it, the pair still found it stressful at times and were frustrated at the journey they were forced to make. “We’re relieved now she’s passed – she can drive to school, it’s going to be massively helpful, so we’re really pleased,” Audrey said. “It feels great now that success has been achieved but I underestimated how stressful it would be.
The first thing Emily did was drive herself straight to university (Audrey Doyle / SWNS)“We go up to Scotland quite regularly but not to sit tests, when she got there she was really stressed because she didn’t know the roads. It also became increasingly difficult because of Storm Babet which happened days before we left, so the major road to Aberdeen was actually shut. She passed but because of the weather it just rained non-stop there, it was absolutely freezing and very challenging.”
Emily added: “I found it quite different to near home – there were less cars on the road which was nice but it’s unfamiliar surroundings so it took a little while to adjust. I practised for a couple of days before but it was a lot to try and adapt to quickly. There’s such a long wait list and it’s better to do it in a place you’re familiar with to take some of the pressure away and because it’s where I’ll be driving now I’ve passed.”
A Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) spokesperson said: “We are taking all the measures we can to reduce driving test waiting times. The work we’ve been doing to date, along with our examiner recruitment, is already creating over 40,000 extra tests every month. We strongly urge learners only to book their driving test when they are ready to pass.”
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