ELECTRONIC LICENSED DRIVER KNOWLEDGE TEST SYSTEM

To move our current PC desktop based multiple choice knowledge test for new applicants who wish to be private hire or hackney carriage drivers (taxi drivers) in Luton, online to a cloud based remote system which can be operational as soon as practicable in order to fulfil service demand and needs for those test requests.


In order to determine a driver is fit and proper to hold licence inline with statutory requirements, Luton Borough Council has adopted a knowledge test as one of those measures within its policy to determine a driver is fit and proper and also with the main objective of public safety. Currently all tests are postponed during the current Covid – 19, which is preventing new applicants from applying to become potential licence (taxi driver) drivers in Luton and preventing the council from business as usual in this matter at this time. However the current knowledge test arrangements are an electronic test which is conducted in the council building with a member of Licensing service staff who invigilate the test which has 5 categories to form part of these tests. There are a combination of 2 tests one for private hire driver and one for hackney carriage drivers which are electronic currently. We also have other paper tests due the complexity to get them on our current system remain paper written tests but want to include all maximum 5 -6 tests combinations onto new system, via specification listed below.
The test is configured in that test users have to pass each category of the test and there is a pass mark associated in the back of the system set up for this to happen. A maximum of 12 people currently can sit the test at any one time. However to plan and prepare for the “new normal” we all will need to adapt to and with users and staff safety at the forefront, these arrangements are looking like will not be possible to fulfil in the future. In order to provide this service to our service users and to provide the full provision of the application services we as a council provide the test needs to have more flexibility to accommodate the moving times we find ourselves in, which our current system does not allow us to do.