Publication of DfI Driver, Vehicle, Operator and Enforcement Statistics Quarter 3 2017/2018

The DfI Driver, Vehicle, Operator and Enforcement Statistics Quarter 3 2017/2018, containing statistics for October to December 2018, is now available. The publication is produced by the Driver and Vehicle Statistics Branch of the Department for Infrastructure and contains summary statistical, performance and trend information relating to the main functions of the DfI’s Driver and Vehicle Agency (DVA) and other vehicle licensing activity. The publication is available on the DfI website at:

www.infrastructure-ni.gov.uk/articles/driver-vehicle-agency-activity-statistics

KEY POINTS

The key points for Quarter 3 2017/18 are:

Driving Test Applications and Tests Conducted

• More than 14,000 Driving Test Applications were submitted to the DVA and just over 14,000 Tests Conducted, representing decreases of 1% and 6% respectively on the equivalent period last year. This is the first time that three consecutive quarters have shown a decrease in applications when compared with the same period the previous year.

Vehicle Test Applications and Tests Conducted

• The most popular booking method for vehicle test applications was the NI Direct internet booking system which received almost 69% of all applications, up over seven percentage points on the previous year.
• Over 233,000 Vehicle Tests were carried out by the DVA (Full tests and Retests), a decrease of nearly 2% compared to the equivalent quarter last year. The vast majority of these (83%) were Full Tests.

Theory Test

• The number of Theory Tests Conducted fell by over 4% to 18,300. This decrease follows on from the 4% decrease seen in the previous quarter and is the first time that there have been three consecutive quarterly decreases.

Vehicle Registrations

• The number of new vehicle first registrations in the period July – September 2017 showed a decrease from the last equivalent quarter, down by slightly more than 10%. Within this, new car first registrations decreased by 9% which is over one thousand less registrations than that seen for the same quarter in 2016.
• The top make for private cars registered for the first time during the July to September quarter was Ford, accounting for nearly 1,600 such registrations, the second largest make was Volkswagen at just over 1,300 first registrations.  However, both Ford and Volkswagen showed a decrease in numbers when compared to the same period in 2016.

Driver Licensing

• Over 71,000 ordinary licensing transactions were carried out by DVA during October to December 2017. This represented an increase of approximately 31% in comparison with the volume carried out in the corresponding quarter of 2016.

Road Transport Licensing

• At the 31st December 2017, there were nearly 11,200 licensed Taxi Drivers, down by 9% when compared with the same point of 2016. This is a continuation of the declining trend with numbers down by 30% from the series high of around 15,800 recorded at the end of 2013.

Enforcement Activities

• During October to December 2017, DVA Enforcement staff checked almost 1,400 vehicles; of these, the largest volume was for Heavy Goods Vehicles, accounting for nearly half of all the vehicles checked (45%).

DVA Targets - Performance Monitoring

• For the 12 month period up to end-December 2017, both vehicle and driver testing waiting time performance, at around 98% and 97% respectively, have been above Agency target levels to provide 92% of appointments within their target number of days or, upon request, at a later date.
• Over the same period driver licensing processing performance stood at just under 74%, still well below the Agency target of 95% of complete driver licence applications to be issued within 10 working days. Performance during this period had been adversely impacted by the introduction of the new Replacement Driver System in November 2016 and specifically on performance up until the end of March 2017; more recent data reflects a substantial increase in performance in the period April to December 2017.

Notes to editors: 

Background to Driver & vehicle Agency ‘DfI Driver, Vehicle, Operator and Enforcement Statistics

1. Background - This is the latest quarterly edition of the Driver & Vehicle Agency ‘DfI Driver, Vehicle, Operator and Enforcement Statistics’ relating to October to December 2017. The release is written and issued by Driver and Vehicle Statistics Branch in the Department for Infrastructure. This is the fifth edition of the quarterly publication under its new departmental title having previously been released by the former DoE.
2. Quarterly comparisons are included within the release to give some indication of change since the same quarter the previous year; however this is within the context that DVA schedules its operations across the business year to meet its business objectives. Timing and scheduling differences between individual quarters within different years will occasionally produce apparent large movements in trend. For a better understanding of changes in DVA volumes and performance over time, annual trend data should be reviewed. Historical trend information is available from the DfI website at: www.infrastructure-ni.gov.uk/publications/dfi-driver-vehicle-operator-and-enforcement-statistics-trend-series
3. Data sources - The figures are derived mainly from administrative sources held within the DfI’s Driver and Vehicle Agency (DVA) and its Transport Regulation Unit.
4. Vehicle Registration - Although no longer the responsibility of DVA, for completeness and to provide continuity of reporting, detailed figures have been included in this publication relating to vehicle first registrations and vehicle licensing. DVA statisticians receive, on a quarterly basis, quality assured vehicle registration and licensing extracts from the DVLA/DfT for the purposes of producing Official Statistics. The DVLA/DfT are, and continue to be, responsible for all vehicle licensing and registration enquiries. Due to publication timing differences with the DfT, who release the headline UK figures; the latest available NI vehicle first registration figures are up to end-September 2017.
5. Future publication dates - The Driver & Vehicle Agency ‘DfI Driver, Vehicle, Operator and Enforcement Statistics’ is published every quarter at pre-announced release dates, which are available from the GOV.UK website at: www.gov.uk/government/statistics/announcements
6. Publication copies - Electronic copies of the ‘DfI Driver, Vehicle, Operator and Enforcement Statistics’ Quarter 3, October to December 2017 is available at: www.infrastructure-ni.gov.uk/articles/driver-vehicle-agency-activity-statistics
7. Infographic – a companion Infographic is also available on our website at: www.infrastructure-ni.gov.uk/articles/driver-vehicle-agency-activity-statistics  
8. Official Statistics - This is a National Statistics publication and therefore follows the Code of Practice for Official Statistics. You can find further information about the Code of Practice at: www.statisticsauthority.gov.uk/assessment/code-of-practice/index.html

9. For further information please contact: 
   DVA Statistics Branch
   Belfast Test Centre
   66 Balmoral Road
   Malone Lower
   Belfast BT12 6QL
   
   Tel (public enquiries): 028 9054 7989 (Text relay prefix 18001)
   E-mail: ASRB@nisra.gov.uk
   Website: www.infrastructure-ni.gov.uk/topics/dfi-statistics-and-research

All media queries should be directed to the Department for Infrastructure Press Office on 028 9054 0007 or email: press.office@infrastructure-ni.gov.uk or out of hours please contact the duty press officer via pager number 07923 974 383 and your call will be returned. 

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