Vehicle test scheme could begin next year

Deputies voted to introduce a system of inspections for vehicles in 2019

A scheme to test vehicles in Guernsey could start next year, according to the president of the Environment and Infrastructure (E&I) Committee.

E&I President Lindsay de Sausmarez said the inspections could first apply to vehicles that travel internationally and then move in phases to all other eligible vehicles.

The States voted to introduce periodic technical inspections in 2019.

The initial timeline for the introduction of the scheme was 2022 but it was set back due to the Covid pandemic.

UK standards

Under the new scheme, the majority of vehicles more than five years old would need to be tested once every three years.

In an update to States members about the work of E&I, Deputy de Sausmarez told her colleagues "detailed proposals for the introduction of periodic technical inspections have now been developed in close consultation with the local motor industry".

But she added the speed at which the inspections would be rolled out would "depend on the speed legislation could come forward".

Detailing what the inspections would entail, she said "the standards align broadly with the UK's, with some adjustment for local factors and local legislation where appropriate, such as with respect to tyre tread depths".