Patrick O'Donovan (Limerick, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Ceann Comhairle for selecting the matter of the industry knowledge test for small public service vehicles for discussion. I regret I have had to raise it as a Topical Issues matter but I have already raised it umpteen times through parliamentary questions, as well as at the Oireachtas transport committee, but the replies have been wholly unsatisfactory. This is a significant issue, particularly in rural areas, as many applying for SPSV licences fail the knowledge test. The knowledge test does not take into consideration where the applicant hopes to operate the licence. Instead, it takes into account a notional area of each county.

If one comes from a county the size of Cork, one will have the misfortune of having a high chance of failing the knowledge test even before sitting it. For example, an applicant from Bantry, County Cork, could be faced with the question, “On which street in Mitchelstown, County Cork, is the post office?” An applicant from Kilbeheny, County Limerick, two miles over the road from Mitchelstown, will not be asked that question when doing the Limerick knowledge test even though he or she will be operating in an area that could encompass Kilbeheny, Cahir, County Tipperary, and Mitchelstown.

The National Transport Authority, NTA, fails to recognise the taxi industry knowledge tests bear no resemblance to the areas they are expected to cover. When I have raised this several times at the Oireachtas transport committee, I have used the example of a person applying for a test in Shannon Banks, County Clare. This is essentially a suburb of Limerick city and the applicant would be carrying out most work there. However, will the knowledge test ask the applicant about Corbally, Roches Street, Ballycummin, Raheen or Dooradoyle? No, it will ask about Lisdoonvarna, Kilrush and Kilkee, bearing no resemblance to the area in which the SPSV will cover.

Accordingly, in 2012, in Cork, 225 sat the knowledge test with 186, 82%, failing it. In Limerick, 83 sat the test and 60, 72%, failed it. In Mayo, 19 sat the test but 78% failed it. In Tipperary, 21 people sat the test but 72% of them failed. In the Minister of State’s area of Killaloe, County Clare, and Ballina, County Tipperary, an applicant would be expected to know about places from where Deputy Mattie McGrath comes, down in the Knockmealdown Mountains.

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