- Department of Transport to open selected DVS centres on
Saturdays in a bid to clear customer backlogs
- The eight week blitz aims to reduce customer wait times
- Follows
success of Saturday opening hours at Joondalup Driver Assessment Centre
The Department of
Transport (DoT) will open three selected Driver and Vehicle Services (DVS)
centres on Saturdays in a blitz to reduce extended wait times and ease ongoing
pressure on customers and staff at metro centres.
In
recent months, metro DVS centres have experienced high customer numbers with
wait times for services growing considerably due to several factors including:
- high
levels of interstate and overseas migration to WA resulting in more complex
transactions in centres including driver's licence and vehicle transfers;
- increased
number of customers attending centres for transactions that can be processed
online or at a participating Australia Post outlet; and
- a
challenging job market impacting the recruitment and retention of staff.
From 8 June, DoT will
open the City West, Cannington and Mirrabooka DVS centres on Saturdays, processing
driver and vehicle transactions from 7.15am to 2.15pm for a period of eight
weeks. Practical driving assessments (PDAs), marine, dealer and NDIS
transactions will not be conducted during Saturday opening hours.
The Joondalup and
Kelmscott Driver Assessment Centres will continue to operate on Saturdays, with
Joondalup offering PDAs by appointment and driver transactions while Kelmscott
will offer PDAs by appointment only.
The Joondalup Driver
Assessment Centre opened on 27 November 2023 and is open six days a week,
Monday to Saturday, providing PDAs and driver transactions including learner's
permits, WA photocard applications, learner's permit theory tests, hazard
perception tests, and interstate and overseas licence transfers.
In
the first six months of operation, DoT staff at Joondalup have processed nearly
30,000 transactions such as:
- conducting
more than 10,000 practical driving assessments;
- issuing
6,922 new learner's permits;
- conducted
6,236 computerised theory and hazard perception tests; and
- processed
2,399 interstate and overseas driver licence transfers.
DoT is continuing to
develop and implement more customer service improvements, including further
staff recruitment, communications around digital and alternative solutions to
attending centres, solutions to reduce the number of vehicle dealers attending
DVS centres, longer-term investment in improved business information systems
and accommodation options for more centres and service points in the metro
area.
Comments attributed to Minister Assisting the Transport Minister David
Michael:
"The success of Saturday opening
hours at the Joondalup Driver Assessment Centre indicates that customers would
welcome more centres offering driver and vehicle transactions on Saturdays.
"A number of factors have
contributed to the increased wait times for customers in centres over recent
months, despite the time taken to complete transactions in centres remaining
consistent.
"I'd like to acknowledge the
hard work of the DVS centre staff, and the patience of their customers, during
this period of high demand.
"DoT will continue to
investigate ways to improve service through extended trading hours, continued
recruitment and educating customers about digital and alternative solutions to
attending a DVS centre."
