DriveTest

As all the other reviews say, rude
I know working in client-facing environment can be stressful and frustrating but the least you can do is talk nicely and politely to people

Good place to apply for a G1, G2 or G license. I recommend you speak English, because the employees are not very friendly when you speak another language.

Drive Test Downsview Parc, good center, easy access from TTC Bus stop or Go Train. 1-2hrs wait during peak hours.

Avoid this drive test centre at all costs. Absolutely garbage staff who seem to misunderstand that their job is to help people and doing so is not an inconvenience to them.

Driver Instructers are rude, speaks in very low pace, difficult to hear. Instructer actually fights with me after the test. Horrible Behaviour

I would say go to another location, staff is very rude, except one guy he was at front, Joseph served me extremely rude, old guy. He thinks we are stupid waiting long hours and get this kind of service I don’t except good customer service but they should treat with respect.

If you arrive at 7: 00am is your best bet to do the G1 test and if you don't pass, you could get back in the line up and do your test again before 9: 00am, but if you show up after 9: 00am it would take you at least 2 hours in the line up and if you don't pass the first time you must get back in the line up and it would take more then 2 or 3 hours to do your test again. In this picture shows the line up out side at noon when you get in there are 30 numbers ahead of you still. This line up come towards the camera and goes back to front door like a U shape.

Long lines are to be expected, but you should be done in 2 hours or so. One of the staff in the written exam room's quite rude and seems to be fed up just talking to people.

Please invest in a proper outside waiting area. There should be a covered outside waiting area with seating for those that need it. Washrooms are disgusting.

Arrived on Tuesday 7: 08am, there was already a long line. My ticket number was 80, and were called at around 8: 10am. The line was long but was consistently moving, so it didn’t feel very daunting.

My main complain is that I hold a drivers license from a country that can exchange for G2. Because I didn’t have the proper documents for the exchange, I was planning to just take the G1. But the staff at counter said it’s illegal to hold both drivers license so I must exchange. This is not my understanding after reading through everything related to license exchange on the government website. I thought I have the option to within 60 days of arriving in the country. But he said it’s a requirement to exchange and I cannot take the G1.

Most of the employees there had only one question interview
Do you feel entitled? Yes
Congratulations you are hired

Despite the long waits, cold temperatures, and slow network, I was able to get everything done that I have been contemplating for over a year in just one day.

I would like to say thank you to Max and Ryan for all of their help because if it wasn't for them, I would not have been able to meet my deadlines. You are more than exceptional, cheers!

I would caution anyone not to go to this Centre. There is a long wait (3 - 5 hours) and after that you might not even get it. No effort is made to manage the number of people in line. Also the center is not open on weekends while others are. Apparently the west end locations are better. All together a shame that kids have to go through this to get a license.

This comment has nothing to do with racism, but I just wonder how many of you guys had unluckily received a fail by a curly hair brown examiner with glasses who keeps sighing, gives you late instructions, and refuse to provide you the failing reason with a rude attitude.

They are very slow in serving people, I was there today for just registering my driving experience letter, I had to wait almost 6 hours outside in cold and windy weathet for doing 10 minutes job.
They don't care how many people are waiting outside and lined up. Only 2 person was working and they work as slow as possible.

Standing 3 hrs outside on the lineup at subzero temperatures is unreal.
Please MTO do something about this.

Staff here are helpful however this location is wholly unequiped to handle the amount of traffic it receives, be it to size or staffing shortages (likely the first). For anyone who has had any sort of mix up here, please be polite and explain your situation to the staff in a respectful way, given the amount of people who take their frustration out on them, a little courtesy may take you a long way in terms for accommodation.

Examiner was very rude which make me nervous all the time while I'm doing THE test! I don't know ministry how hire this kinda of people to do the examination.

Do NOT go to this centre.avoid it at all costs. I went there for my G1 test, and stood in a line, outside, in rain, and freezing winds. The line did not move for an hour! Not even exaggerating the numbers here! For an entire hour, I stood in the rain and freezing cold, and they did not even admit one person from the line. The employee guarding the door however, was very happy to send in any individual who would go to him under the pretense of asking a question. THEY ARE HAPPY TO BE INCOMPETENT! I left after 1.5 hours of waiting and not moving even one single step forward. Oh, and there is no online booking, btw!

Many thanks to Rod (Rodigue). He's an amazing examiner - not only professional at what he does, but also a very friendly person to interact with. Before my test I saw how he conducted himself with another person at the test beside my parking spot while I was waiting, then I prayed for myself to have him as my examiner. Voila, my dream came true! I think Rod is the best we can ask for when having such a stressful test. He made sure I understand the instruction and was attentive to the road situation through the entire test. The test went smoothly, I didn't make major mistakes, so I passed the G test. I dare say I wouldn't feel too bad even if I failed because Rod gave such a good exam experience and the failure won't appear so depressing. This is my second attempt at Downsview. I was failed by a lady the first time and I admitted it was due to my mistakes. But she was quite the opposite of Rod. Those loud and harsh screams and the intimidating atmosphere she gave really lingered with me a while after the exam. She traumatized me and made me feel the driving test is more dreadful than it actually is. All in all, if you're lucky to have Rod as your examiner, your peace of mind is guaranteed. Really hope we have more staff like Rod serving the public. Also, Knoxin (hope I captured her name correctly) at the service desk was very friendly and helpful as well.

After traveling for 2 hours both ways, and waiting for 3 hrs in the winter chill, my daughter was turned away to come back for her G1 test. This is atrocious!
I wonder why they do NOT having an appointment system or a virtual queue system for G1? ! They are still following traditional ways of physically waiting in the long queue for hours in the harsh weather conditions. Isn’t this something basic which one should expect in a country which values Humans, their well-being and time? !
This review is not just for this centre, but the entire DriveTest system as a whole. I hope measures are being taken to understand, and ease the pain & struggle of prospective drivers.

I was so greatful for my G2 Road Test, When i have been there in Morning. My Examiner Mr. Michal was give me good Instructor.he was very Professional & Kindly thank you.

Wow I am so surprised how they are unprofessional and disorganized. It was not clear which line is which, staffs are rude and they basically don’t care even the line up goes forever. They work so slow and less people are working at the counter. Even some staffs are just sitting on a chair and just observing even people are waiting for hours and hours.

I waited for 4 hours outside under the sun. After I could get in the building finally, I waited for another an hour. Unbelievably I waited over 40 mins even no one was in front of me. Simply they didn’t put any staff for a license exchange purpose for a whole.

Worst customer service ever, I definitely avoid this place if I need to go DriveTest again. I doubt that if I really in a developed country.

If you unluckily need to visit, I would strongly recommend to bring a portable chair, hat, battery for a mobile, drink, food and a big patience. If possible bring your friend (s) so that at least you can chat and pretend as if a picnic day. Most likely we need to wait more than 3 or 4 hours outside. Good luck!

Tried to call & on hold indefinitely with message saying, “Your call is being transferred. When I got through, there was message I am sorry but our mailbox is full”

I’ve NEVER been able to finish what I need to do here without waiting 4+hours. Ridiculously slow and a total WASTE OF TIME.

Thank you Lisa and friends at driving test centre.

Guy, you have to be prepared and you will face with long line. Be patient all you can wakeup at 6 am and wait into the line. Very helpful staff.

Rude driving staff, they already make up their mind once they sit in the car. They will fail u for 5 km too fast or 5km driving slow. You can't hear them under their face diapers.

I waited 4 hours in the rain, outside, just to get inside the building for another line up. (Make sure you get the ticket once you get inside the building otherwise you will waste your wait tine)

While waiting, after getting a ticket, I saw this old man (very left) helping other people ahead of me. All staffs seemed nice except this old man. He treated people like virus and seemed to have real sick arrogance, bad manners and disdain. Unfortunately, I was guided to this old man too.

I had an issue with the proof of ID since my old driver's license is expired, my passport is damaged and I only had a secondary citizenship certificate (no card). But I had landing immigrant paper which I could definitely use to get the driver's license, (confirmed by Service Ontario, Passport Canada and so on) but that guy sarcastically asked me weird questions like "how did you even enter Canada? " as if I wasn't even a Canadian citizen but an illegal residents lol Then he said I can't apply for the driver's license so I had to leave after waiting for like 5 hours in total.

Later that day after visiting Passport Canada and Service Ontario, I found out that I could actually apply driver's license with what I had. I totally wasted whole day because of him.

Not responsible staffs, difficult situation line up at the front door and inside, unfortunately my bad experiences today was waiting in line until I was too late so my road test canceled with no refunds because of poor management and irresponsible supervisor! Not recommend this center, My concern; 1 star is too much!

No matter if they don’t see you as a customer at least Canadian expect respect! Not recommend this drive centre, for a second I felt that I’m not in Canada when I saw supervisor’s behavior with people.

Worst drive centre, supervisor failed me for things I actually did right, my advice is to book a different test centre.

Garbage. If I could leave 0 stars I would. Have gone 4 times so far, waited >5hrs in line each time and never got in. Any business run this way would have been long out of business and bankrupt. PRIVATIZE THIS TRASH.

I was failed drive test twice there in 2 years. I have 12 years of driving experience. Last time test taker did not show up and I was standing under the sun in midsummer at 3 o'clock for 45 minutes, sweat a lot. Until I went inside. No one responded me. Then one staff came to take exam and he was so strict and angry. Then I failed again after one year and postponing test 5 times to pandemic. Very bad test center.

The place was crowded and there was no shade to hide from sun. Fortunately some cool wind was blowing. So we could pass some couple of hours. But it is definate that a sunshade is necessary. Also somebody wants to go to restroom, there is no place as you can't enter the TestDrive's office and elsewhere no shopping store etc.

Ran into one of the most terrible instructors.he basically set me up to fail he didn’t really care too much about job, he just kept sighing and because of lack of attention he gave me late instructions. He just really wanted to be done.horrible experience here HIGHLY recommend you go somewhere else.

Hi everyone. I was there yesterday. I arrived at 7am. There was already a huge line. About one long line, and a half. So I started waiting. The line grew even bigger every half a hour.if u go there. Just be ready to wait a very long time. Definitely recommend that u arrive early. As line grows bigger threw out the day. Waited about 5 hours to get service. The service was great. Very friendly staff. Thanks for doing such a great job in times like these. I went there to do the G1 written test. You will walk into a room with a computer u will be assigned too. To write the test. It is touch screen. I was so glad I passed it on my first try. Just make sure you study. Signs test is pretty much common sense. The written one is abit tricky. But if u study. You'll be fine. I recommend Ontario g1 driving test app. Hope this helps y'all. Good luck everyone.

The lady that was in the cashier was a bit rude, tried calling to ask a simple question they never pick up and apparently they are always under staffed only having 2 people receive your documents and for other stuff, letting people stay outside in the cold for more than 2 or more hours waiting for a simple procedure and if they have more room why can't they make more computers available to take the exam faster instead of having people wait in line again, they are quick to take your money but not to give you the proper atención.

If I could rate this place 0 stars, I would.
I had the most unpleasant experience at this Service Ontario this morning.

Not only was the signage for the lines confusing, but the employees were also the most condescending and humiliating throughout the entire process.

Out of the 4 employees I saw working there this morning, 3 of them displayed absolutely NO customer service, nor BASIC human respect to the individuals they should be “SERVICING. ”

They treat people like subpar citizens.

I don’t care if you work for the government.

There is no need to put people down or give them a hard time for something they have taken the time out of their days, to spend their hard earned money, all the while paying for YOUR salaries with our Tax $, just to be degraded by Service Ontario workers.

The employees at this location surely need further training on how to interact & service the public—because that is undeniably the BASIS of your jobs.

A bald-headed middle-aged caucasian man at the Service Desk was so rude. I heard him say to the lady beside me, “CAN YOU MULTI-TASK? ” And continued giving her a hard time, rambling about her accord, dragging on her process because she didn’t speak loud enough or move fast enough for him.

There is a way to speak to people, and a way not to speak to people.

To be a Service Ontario worker, I’m quite certain that the people you are servicing, shouldn’t feel like they are being an inconvenience.

While in the Testing Room, there was another middle-aged caucasian man. He had short hair—half of it was going grey.

I overheard him speaking to another individual that had just finished their test. He was giving this individual a hard time for not stating the name written on their paper.

This person expressed that their father had passed, and she had just undergone a name change that she was unfortunately not part of, so she needed a moment to gather her details. She wasn’t giving her name in the exact order he wanted, so he continued to give her a difficult time, would not give her a moment, and ultimately delaying the process as well.

It is understandable that they are trying to minimize fraudulent activities, however, if someone had just expressed their struggles, why would you hassle and press them, while they are trying to give you the correct details?

To add to that, after she left, he continued to complain to his colleague about this individual, saying, “You know it’s too early when you don’t know your own name—just tell me your MF***ing name! ”. As if the other people in the Testing Room couldn’t hear—we most certainly could.

This is absolutely unacceptable.
No individual should be treated, spoken to, or even spoken of like that.

This location has such an unprofessional and hostile environment with employees that truly lack compassion and understanding for the people they should be servicing.

I could not even imagine how they are treating newcomers to Canada.

I think these employees forget they are here to service the people, not bully them.

If you despise helping people so much, maybe don’t work at Service Ontario?

I hope the manager or supervisor of this location takes the appropriate actions—because your current employees & how they are carrying themselves are truly a detriment to your brand.

It costs $0.00 to be a decent person.

10/10 would NOT recommend this location.

Thank you.

Good test center. Was very quick process for the g1 written test. Friendly staff.
I wish there was public transport going to this center.

The one star is not for the staff but for the rules that have been implemented at this drivetest centre location. So, apparently individuals, who wear masks which have a respirator are not allowed to give the test.
If such masks not allowed:
1) They should provide disposable masks rather than ask customers to visit again. (there are no shops close by) I had to travel for more than an hour to reach this centre to be told (politely) I couldn't wear such a mask. Another lady was arguing with them on exactly this same topic. (a pack of 100 masks costs ~10$ and they can't seem to afford this.)
2) Put up a notice outside so that we don't have to wait for an hour and then be told that such masks are not allowed.
As long as you have the documents in place, the staff does their job but will definitely not do anything to provide a positive customer satisfaction.
It's unfortunate, since the staff does seem to be a hardworking lot. The center needs to be trained better in managing customers and showing a bit more compassion.

I had a very good experience at this place yesterday. I came at 10: 30 am and was done with everything in an hour. Yes, there are lines, limited amount of people inside and in a classroom for G1 test. Yes, you need to bring your own proper mask. Staff is friendly and explains everything properly. I guess, if you don’t comply with rules, they don’t have much of a choice but make sure you follow them. Study well for your exam, and you’d be fine! Aced mine with the first attempt!:) however, if you don’t, you can get back in line to attempt it again for $16.

Very slow centre. It is Christmas eve and half of the personnels have already gone home. But the rest of personnel tru their best to serve people. Lots of people are waiting and not enough chairs. I am here for more than 2 hours.

I just wanted to extend my driving license here but the line was ridiculously long so i exited the door.the place was obviously disorganized.never interacted with the staff here but the place has a sketchy feeling.

Bad service. Waited for almost 3 hours and end up with unsuccessful because i failed the eye test.: (And the lady who served me was so rude and unrespectful.

This place is so disorganized and fire code hazard. The lines are not organized and people are blocking walkways and doors. The fire chief should investigate. We privatized for what? Just is the 1% can live it up on New Years. It takes over 40mins just to speak to the kiosk person (some white dude who’s a moron with brown curly hair and talks way too much!). This place is RIDICULOUS!

This place is hell. The staff is untrained. They told me i am missing a paper which is not mentioned on the website after Waiting for 2 hours. They could have told me earlier and i could have arranged it. On top of that they arr rude and unprofessional. I wish i could give less than 1 star.

I don't know what all the negative reviews are about. I had my g2 at this location recently, passed on the first try. My examiner was very friendly, explained all the rules, and even told me that I was allowed to use a backup camera if I wished. I maintained my speed, stopped where I was supposed to stop, did all that was required, such as parking, stopping, signaling etc. The lady then told me that I had passed, wished me a good day and left. I then went to a counter to get my papers, the lady behind the counter was also smiley and very friendly. She congratulated me, gave me a temporary license, wished me a good day, and that was it. I'm so glad I didn't listen to all the people telling me to go to the middle of nowhere and do my test there because it's easier to pass

I had a very bad experience with this center yesterday. My mom wanted to take her writing test and we got there around 6: 30, after registration they took her to test room and as she had stress since she is around 60 years old, I told hel take your time, because I knew there is no time limit for G1 test. And nobody told us that this center will close by 7 pm and all the computer will be turn off exactly at 7 pm. So she did her role test completely with no error and just start her sign test that they informed her only 2 more minutes left. And she did 8 out of 20 that they turned off the computer.: with only 5 more minutes she could complete it. But they just turned off the computer.they were so rude. Even If they told us ahead of time she might manage her time or even postpone it for another day. But they were insisting that we close at 7 and this is what it is. And my mom passed role test but as she didn’t have time to complete sign test, so she should pay AGAIN to make the test. IT’S TOTALLY UNFAIR. AND THEIR ATTITUDE WAS NOT ACCEPTABLE AT ALL.

Long ques, employees are slow, however, some are nice. Main problem is with your examiner, they come to ur car, with a decision made. When my examiner came she was rude and disrespectful from the begining. At the end she failed me stating my accelaration was not smooth all the time, not speed, it was acceleration! However, there was not a single mistake in specific driving tasks like lane change, 3 point turn, parralel parking or parking in general. She failed me for such a reason that is a respective call of the examiner and hence you can not argue. Bad experience overall.

Just completed my Drive Test. Every step of the way was respectful, in regards to staff. Don't be afraid of the reviews you may see here. Just be confident and abide by the laws of the road and you should be good to go!

I had my test at this location. It was my 2nd time going today (the first time I failed over bs but it's whatever) and my examiners name was Conrad (or something like that. He's Asian). He is the meanest most abrupt man I have ever encountered in my life.
Wait times are long, drive tests are not free and although he passed me I can't shake how just unnecessarily rude his demeanour was.
Happy he passed me, but his manager should speak to him about how he engages with *customers*/*taxpayers*. At the end of everything he told me I passed and I was like "thank you so much. " He didn't even acknowledge me, he just walked right out the car angry as ever. Just an awful man.
Also, is it just me or is there never a time when both Kiosks are functioning? This facility is just a mess. Some of the spaces in the parking lot cannot be pulled into correctly because of potholes. The route for the G2 test is congested with large trucks. This place is just a mess!

Do not use this centre. They’re doing business to fail as many as students possible to earn money. Not professional examiners with unreasonable make up reason to fail you. As many of reviews mentioning, examiner Saigon is rude and unreasonable. One day, I believe some recording will reveal this unfair judgement.

This place is hell on earth. The staff are so rude and patronising, especially to speakers of English as a second language. I was embarrassed to hear how they spoke to other customers, simply because they were having trouble understanding the multi-step instructions they were given. Talking to them like they were idiots, exchanging snide looks with their coworkers, eye rolling and holding their shaking head in their hands were a few choice examples of customer service I witnessed during my thankfully brief visit. No sensitivity whatsoever.

It is also impossible to get to if you don’t drive or have someone to drive you, which I just don’t understand. (I was there to exchange my foreign licence). It is out in the middle of nowhere in an industrial park, by some train tracks, behind a nondescript warehouse. I came after work one night so it was dark out and completely sketchy.

My choice of transport was either a 90 minute commute including streetcar, then a train, then a bus that only comes every 25mins, or an expensive Uber. Ubers don’t even want to come out there, it’s so remote - I had two cancel and I’m 8.5mths pregnant and it’s winter. God knows where the bus stop is to get back to the ttc station, I gave up searching.

I had to attend twice because the instructions on the website and confirmation email are so convoluted that I turned up without a document I needed. I had previously called to confirm what I needed to bring, and after 2hrs on hold, I was sent to a voicemail box that was full. So much wasted time.

Why you can’t do licence exchanges at Service Ontario is beyond me. No one should ever have to come here. I don’t know if all DriveTest centres are this bad, but I would avoid at all costs. I hope to never be back.

Examiners are paid to have you fail and will make you fail if they don't like your face.
I made a complain on my racist examiner. She claimed I was not at "full speed" when merging on the highway when I had a car driving 60km/h in front of me. I still managed to accelerate and merged at 75-80km/h as soon at the car moved but for her it was not enough.

She mentioned at the end that my test was spotless and my parking very clean.

Her comment was at the end, the ''Ministry want us to fail people this month that don't merge on the highway at full speed. So even if your test was good, you will have to redo it all''

I made a complain and the supervisor REFUSED to come out and meet with me.
So unless I there is no judgement call, I will put that on that on racism.

This place should be investigated ASAP.

Before I even left my house, I already expected there to be one working kiosk machine. Funnily enough when I arrived, the last one stopped working. This location is quite confusing for those who want to get their G1. I helped someone out who also had the same confusion. I went to the help desk and was actually helped quite promptly despite being at the back of the line. All employees that I came across were pleasant and willing to help. I really don't like the new written test using a computer screen, but there isn't much choice in the matter. Overall this location needs to fix their kiosks and make service more efficient.

Yesterday I have tested in Dowsview Drivetest center for my AZ license, I have passed with limited mistakes.my examiner was Eric #225 He was humble, quite, giving you clear instructions, make you to be a safe driver, he will not make you nervous/scary and to be unsafe. If you are testing with Eric you are in good hands. He is not friendly as most of the examiners are not friendly but he is doing his job very well and he will not fail you for nothing. Eric, examiner 225 if you are reading this Thank you so much for making me a safe driver and giving alot of confidence to be a safe driver please keep that outstanding skills you have. You deserve a gold medal. Overall rating on this drivetest center is 100%, please dont listen to the other people go and see the service.

The Stuff at Downsview location are terrible with terrible service. Some of the examiners are there to ruin people’s life by bringing thier miserable attitude to their work place and take it out on innocent people. I had bad experience twice at that location will never step my feet in the place. The ministry needs to shut down that place or keep the good ones and fire the miserable stuff ughh

There is this lady in her 50’s white lady with blond hair. She is short. I don’t know her name. I asked this another black lady at the front to tell me her name which she pretend like she didn’t hear me. Oh She’s a monster unpleasant person. The minute she walked towards me I noticed that she wasn’t nice. I guess that’s how the ministry train them in order to make money or are miserable in their outside life. I regret that i should have refused to be tested by her. I didn’t know that I have a right to do so. Which now I know. She let me drive for 40 minutes enjoyed my brand new car and when we came back to the centre she told me that she terminated my test due to safety reasons. I was stunned by that and ask myself wow how come the previous 2 examiners wasn’t like that? I failed 2 times because I made some mistakes.but at my 3rd attempt I was so ready because my license was expiring. She was extremely rude and screaming at me the whole time. I feel humiliated by this and doing it from the beginning. If you are a soft person this place is not for you they will take your confidence away from you. Go somewhere like Etobicoke and east York. Very nice people

The best and the worst test center at the same time for G test. It all depends only on examiner’s assumptions, you can get different comments from different examiners, and they might tell you opposite things. If you are lucky to get an adequate professional examiner like Michelle (blonde, not Spanish and no glasses) you can be sure that the result will depend on your driving skills only! If your examiner is Chinese old man, try to make your observation process more notable, especially when checking a blind spot. Finally, the world’s worst examiner… AHMED! Just a liar. Stay away from him, you can ask his supervisor to assign another examiner, Michelle for example.

I was feeling anxious and scared after reading reviews about this location, but my experience was stellar!
My examiner, Michelle, who also goes by Mimi, was very professional with a calm and tranquil approach and communication. The days leading up to my appointment, I imagined all kinds of negative scenarios, from the examiner being rude, unfair, and failing me without due cause. I feel silly when I think about how negative I was leading up to the road exam. I passed without a hiccup. If you happen to be assigned to Mimi, you are in good hands. She knows what she is doing.
Don’t beat yourself up like I did, imagining all the bad that could happen, instead, visualize and feel yourself doing great. Practice a couple of times before your exam. Don’t sweat it. You will do well.

Cheers