VIEWPOINT FOR 11 SEPTEMBER 2008 
FROM DR RICHARD TAYLOR

I went to a meeting on Monday evening about the threatened closure of the Driving Test Centre in Kidderminster expecting to hear a response from the Driving Standards Agency (DSA) to the excellent letter sent from the District Council outlining many of the reasons against the closure. 

To all of our disappointments the hapless representative of the DSA had only seen the letter just before he came and so had none of the answers we needed. However the meeting was very useful to me. 
There were about 70 people there most of whom were driving instructors or test examiners from surrounding areas as well as from Wyre Forest. The advantages of the Kidderminster Centre for clients, instructors and examiners were expressed forcibly and the disadvantages of the alternative in Lower Gornal exposed ruthlessly particularly by a coach operator and driver who knew the area and its traffic jams and parking problems far too well. 
A new driver asked "How can you be tested sitting in traffic?" 
Instructors and examiners echoed this while pointing out that extremely heavy and aggressive traffic conditions were not helpful to candidates under stress in any case. They said the Kidderminster area was excellent for tests because of the wide variety of road conditions encountered and many people from outside Wyre Forest chose this Centre for their tests.
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As with the threatened Post Office closures the reason for the Driving Centre closure appears to be financial as the existing building has been allowed to get into a state of disrepair needing expensive work. 

We were not told of the comparative costs of repairs at Kidderminster with the work required at Lower Gornal or of the effects on cost of the fact that the Kidderminster Centre is owned by the DSA as opposed to the Lower Gornal Centre that is rented. I promised to write to the relevant Minister about this and to talk to him on my return from London – if Mr Brown has not had a re-shuffle of his ministerial colleagues before then!
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Although we were not as badly affected by the appalling weather as in June and July of last year and as in other parts of the country this year, a number of households again had the awful devastation and disruption of flooding. 

I visited some of the householders in Wolverley and I have asked them to let me know their thoughts on the causes of this year's repeated floods and their problems. 
So far -
     #   an inadequate pumping station, 
     #   collapsed storm drains in the roads, 
     #   a partially blocked bridge and 
     #   inadequate emergency help telephone lines 
have been mentioned. 
I understand that sadly some properties in Wribbenhall were affected again, not by the culvert this time, but by inadequate storm drains and the dams in gutters produced by traffic bumps. Again if residents will write to me with their comments it would be helpful. As we had meetings after the floods last year in both Wolverley and Wribbenhall there could be a need for follow up meetings to enquire particularly how the recommendations in the Pitt Report are being implemented.

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