There’s good news for Ontario drivers who hate parallel parking and don’t currently have a G license.
The Department of Transportation confirmed to CTV News Toronto on Thursday that the modified tests needed to get your full license will continue to be available “until further notice.”
Department spokeswoman Dakota Brazier said in an email that the test — which does not include emergency stops, three-point turns or parallel parking — can be booked at all permanent DriveTest centers and the remaining temporary locations.
Ontario removed these “duplicative” elements of the test in January of this year in an effort to clear a backlog of hundreds of thousands of appointments resulting from the COVID-19 shutdown.
The measure was meant to be temporary and was set to expire on March 31.
However, Transport Minister Caroline Mulroney announced the same day that the modified test would go nowhere due to “high demand for Class G road tests in Ontario.”
“This allows more streamlined tests to be conducted while continuing to assess basic driving skills,” Mulroney said in a tweet at the time.
Although emergency stops, three-point turns and parallel parking will remain in place for the standard G2 tests, driving instructors who spoke to The Canadian Press after the announcement in January said the modification could shave up to 15 minutes off the standard 30-minute test .
Driving safety advocates opposed the changes earlier this year, saying that, among other things, the backlog-clearing modifications weren’t worth the potential dangers they could bring to Ontario’s streets.
–With files from The Canadian Press
Add Comment