A new study reveals a considerable rise in accidents as a result of Ontario's G driving test overhaul, which involved changes to the "duplicative" elements of the test in an effort to clear the backlog of road test appointments accumulated during lockdowns. 

The study, conducted by Canadian insurance aggregator MyChoice, follows a 2023 report by the Auditor General of Ontario that uncovered a lack of safety evaluations in the modifications made to the province's G driving test. 

"In January 2022, Ontario introduced significant alterations to its G road test, a move aimed at addressing the backlog of drivers waiting to take their test due to the COVID-19 pandemic," the company noted. 

"These changes, made without formal safety evaluations or cabinet approval, involved removing certain elements deemed duplicative from the test. Emergency stops, three-point turns, parallel parking and driving in residential areas were excluded completely."

The study continues: "Six months after implementing the reduced G road test, the Ministry of Transportation performed an evaluation, which, according to the formal audit ... revealed a 30 per cent increase in the at-fault collision rate among novice drivers who passed the reduced test (2.4 per cent) compared to those who passed the full test (1.8 per cent)." 

To analyze the impact of the test changes two years after they were enacted, the website compared two groups of drivers — those who got licenced at any point in 2022 with at least one year of driving experience, and those who got licenced in 2021. 

The company observed 2,400 G-licenced drivers from each of the two categories and focused on the percentage of drivers involved in accidents for each period. 

It found that after the test changes, the percentage of novice drivers involved in accidents increased from 9.59 per cent to 10.34 per cent, a 7.82 per cent overall increase. 

"The increase in accident rates among new drivers after the test changes in our sample is a matter of concern. It indicates that while the test changes addressed the backlog issue, they may have inadvertently compromised certain aspects of driving proficiency," said Aren Mirzaian, CEO of MyChoice. 

"A rise in accidents will undoubtedly have an impact on insurance rates as overall claims amounts rise. This, unfortunately, may result in higher car insurance costs for the public in Ontario," Mirzaian noted. 

While the test changes were originally intended to be temporary, the provincial government announced in 2022 the updated test would remain in place due to the "high demand for class G road tests across Ontario."