Our Ford E450 20 Seat Bus Has Had Its Signage Applied And Is Ready For Class 4 Unrestricted Lessons

We recently acquired a 2009 Ford E450 20 seat bus, formerly BC Transit bus number 2189, for teaching Class 4 Unrestricted lessons.

West Coast Driver Training has also applied to the Passenger Transportation Board for a General Application bus license for our Ford E450. This application is still being processed but, once it is approved, we will be offering sightseeing tours as well as lessons for sightseeing drivers and those wanting to start sightseeing businesses.

We took our Ford E450 20 seat bus to Mark’s Instant Sign Shop in Duncan for its corporate signage to be applied. That has now been done and our Ford E450 bus is now available for clients wanting training in Class 4 Unrestricted.

Here are are some BEFORE and AFTER photos of our Ford E450 bus at Mark’s Instant Sign Shop on 22 August 2022.

BEFORE ALL THE SIGNAGE WAS APPLIED

Our Ford E450 20 seat bus at Mark's Instant Sign Shop awaiting application of its final signage [Photo: West Coast Driver Training]
Our Ford E450 20 seat bus at Mark’s Instant Sign Shop awaiting application of its final signage [Photo: West Coast Driver Training]
Our Ford E450 20 seat bus at Mark's Instant Sign Shop awaiting application of its final signage [Photo: West Coast Driver Training]
Our Ford E450 20 seat bus at Mark’s Instant Sign Shop awaiting application of its final signage [Photo: West Coast Driver Training]
Our Ford E450 20 seat bus at Mark's Instant Sign Shop awaiting application of its final signage [Photo: West Coast Driver Training]
Our Ford E450 20 seat bus at Mark’s Instant Sign Shop awaiting application of its final signage [Photo: West Coast Driver Training]

AFTER ALL THE SIGNAGE WAS APPLIED

Our Ford E450 20 seat bus at Mark's Instant Sign Shop after application of its final signage [Photo: West Coast Driver Training]
Our Ford E450 20 seat bus at Mark’s Instant Sign Shop after application of its final signage [Photo: West Coast Driver Training]
Our Ford E450 20 seat bus at Mark's Instant Sign Shop after application of its final signage [Photo: West Coast Driver Training]
Our Ford E450 20 seat bus at Mark’s Instant Sign Shop after application of its final signage [Photo: West Coast Driver Training]
Our Ford E450 20 seat bus at Mark's Instant Sign Shop after application of its final signage [Photo: West Coast Driver Training]
Our Ford E450 20 seat bus at Mark’s Instant Sign Shop after application of its final signage [Photo: West Coast Driver Training]
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Our Lesson Prices Will Be Increasing On 1 April 2022. Book Now To Get The Current Lesson Prices.

With the price of fuel and other inputs rising continually, West Coast Driver Training has found it necessary to raise lesson prices.

We have kept our lesson prices below our competitors’ rates for as long as possible but our lesson prices will be increasing on 1 April 2022.

If you are looking for driving lessons, please book with West Coast Driver Training before 1 April 2022 in order to get our current pricing.

This photo of West Coast Driver Training owner Mark Anderson appeared in a Cowichan Valley Citizen article about our use of dash cameras during driving lessons (photo: Robert Barron - Cowichan Valley Citizen)
This photo of West Coast Driver Training owner Mark Anderson appeared in a Cowichan Valley Citizen article about our use of dash cameras during driving lessons (photo: Robert Barron – Cowichan Valley Citizen)

Our Lessons Prices For Class 5 And Class 7 Will Be Increasing In March 2022

West Coast Driver Training has tried to avoid raising Class5 Lesson Prices and Class 7 Lesson Prices for as long as possible but with the rising costs of fuel, insurance and other inputs we will be raising our Class5 Lesson Prices and Class 7 Lesson Prices in March 2022.

West Coast Driver Training is currently charging $110.00 plus GST ($115.50) for a 90 minute Class 5 or Class 7 lesson. We will be increasing that to $120.00 plus GST ($126.00) in March 2022.

We encourage existing clients and potential new clients to book lessons at the current Class5 Lesson Prices and Class 7 Lesson Prices of $110.00 per lesson before our Class5 Lesson Prices and Class 7 Lesson Prices in March 2022.

Our 2020 Toyota Prius Prime is now available for lessons (photo: West Coast Driver Training)
Our 2020 Toyota Prius Prime is now available for lessons (photo: West Coast Driver Training)
Our 2021 Toyota Corolla Hybrid at the ICBC Driver Lincensing office, Nanaimo, BC (photo: West Coast Driver Training)
Our 2021 Toyota Corolla Hybrid at the ICBC Driver Licensing office, Nanaimo, BC (photo: West Coast Driver Training)
Our 2018 Toyota Corolla in front of the Third Wave Coffee Company near the Crofton ferry (photo: West Coast Driver Training)
Our 2018 Toyota Corolla in front of the Third Wave Coffee Company near the Crofton ferry (photo: West Coast Driver Training)

 

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West Coast Driver Training Will Be Offering Lessons In Victoria Every Saturday

Due to the increasing wait times for Road Tests in Duncan, many of our Class 5 and Class 7 clients are booking Road Tests in Victoria and are asking if I can do driving lessons with them in Victoria.

In order to accommodate these requests West Coast Driver Training will be now offering Class 4 Restricted, Class 5 and Class 7 lessons in Victoria every Saturday. We also welcome new clients from the Greater Victoria area.

For our Victoria clients and our Cowichan Valley clients wanting driving lessons in Victoria, we suggest meeting at the ICBC Driver Licensing office at #1-1150 MacKenzie Avenue or the ICBC Claims Centre at 425 Dunedin Street. These are the ICBC Road Test locations in Greater Victoria.

Our 2020 Toyota Prius Prime at the ICBC Driver Licensing office, 426 Dunedin Street, Victoria, BC (photo: West Coast Driver Training)
Our 2020 Toyota Prius Prime at the ICBC Driver Licensing office, 426 Dunedin Street, Victoria, BC (photo: West Coast Driver Training)
ICBC Driver Services, #1 1150 McKenzie Avenue, Victoria is one of the locations where Road Tests are held in Victoria. This photo shows the parking stalls where Road Tests begin and end. (photo: West Coast Driver Training)
ICBC Driver Services, #1 1150 McKenzie Avenue, Victoria is one of the locations where Road Tests are held in Victoria. This photo shows the parking stalls where Road Tests begin and end. (photo: West Coast Driver Training)

To arrange driving lessons, please Contact Us.

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West Coast Driver Training Is Now Offering Three Hour Malahat Lessons From Duncan To Victoria And Back

In response to frequent requests from clients, West Coast Driver Training now offers a three hour Malahat lesson which involves driving over the Malahat from Duncan to Victoria, lesson time in downtown Victoria and then returning to Duncan from Victoria via the Malahat.

Our 2021 Toyota Corolla Hybrid at the Malahat Summit Viewpoint. (photo: West Coast Driver Training)
Our 2021 Toyota Corolla Hybrid at the Malahat Summit Viewpoint. (photo: West Coast Driver Training)

The cost is for this 3 hour lesson is $220.00 plus GST, currently $231.00.

To arrange a Malahat lesson, you can Contact Us by phone/text at (250)732-8093 by email at mark@WestCoastDriverTraining.com. or through the dialog box at the bottom of this post.

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Our New 2021 Toyota Corolla Hybrid Is Now Available For Driving Lessons

West Coast Driver Training has recently added a new 2021 Toyota Corolla Hybrid to out training fleet. It has had the corporate decals applied and the Instructor Brake installed on the passenger side and is now available for clients.

Our 2021 Toyota Corolla Hybrid at the ICBC Driver Lincensing office, Nanaimo, BC (photo: West Coast Driver Training)
Our 2021 Toyota Corolla Hybrid at the ICBC Driver Licensing office, Nanaimo, BC (photo: West Coast Driver Training)

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We Are Adding A 2021 Toyota Corolla Hybrid To Our Fleet

West Coast Driver Training has purchased a new 2021 Toyota Corolla Hybrid as a new training car.

It arrived at Jim Pattison Toyota in Duncan on 12 May 2021 and I will be picking it up next week after Jim Pattison Toyota has done the dealer prep on the car.

Product Adviser Axel Clarke with our new 2021 Toyota Corolla Hybrid that has arrived at Jim Pattison Toyota in Duncan (photo: West Coast Driver Training)
Product Adviser Axel Clarke with our new 2021 Toyota Corolla Hybrid that has arrived at Jim Pattison Toyota in Duncan (photo: West Coast Driver Training)
Our new 2021 Toyota Corolla Hybrid has arrived at Jim Pattison Toyota in Duncan (photo: West Coast Driver Training)
Our new 2021 Toyota Corolla Hybrid has arrived at Jim Pattison Toyota in Duncan (photo: West Coast Driver Training)
Our new 2021 Toyota Corolla Hybrid has arrived at Jim Pattison Toyota in Duncan (photo: West Coast Driver Training)
Our new 2021 Toyota Corolla Hybrid has arrived at Jim Pattison Toyota in Duncan (photo: West Coast Driver Training)

A shout out to Product Advisors Axel Clarke and Steve Reiffenstein and Sales Manager Kenny Hoang whom I dealt with for the purchase of this new training car.

I plan to take delivery of this car next week and it will be available for lessons once the new West Coast Driver Training decals and the passenger side brake have been installed.

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We Offer Driving Lessons In Victoria

West Coast Driver Training has been getting calls from Victoria residents asking about whether we do Driving Lessons in Victoria.

The answer is, “Yes. We do offer Class 4, Class 5 and Class 7 lessons in Victoria.”

We have two suggested meeting places for Victoria clients:

ICBC Driver Services, #1 1150 McKenzie Avenue (at Borden Street)

ICBC Driver Services, #1 1150 McKenzie Avenue, Victoria is one of the locations where Road Tests are held in Victoria (photo: West Coast Driver Training)
ICBC Driver Services, #1 1150 McKenzie Avenue, Victoria is one of the locations where Road Tests are held in Victoria (photo: West Coast Driver Training)

Continue reading We Offer Driving Lessons In Victoria

We Welcome Clients From Salt Spring Island

We welcome clients from Salt Spring Island. Here is a link the BC Ferries schedule for Vesuvius Bay on Salt Spring Island to Crofton, north of Duncan.

We can pick up clients at the Crofton Ferry and drop them at the Crofton Ferry afterwards. But with the travel time between the Crofton Ferry and Duncan we recommend that Salt Spring Island clients consider doing 2 hour or 3 hour lessons rather than our usual 90 minute lessons.

Our lessons are typically 90 minutes. With a 90 minute lesson, a significant portion of the lesson time is consumed by travel time between the Crofton Ferry and Duncan and back again. A longer lesson time gives the student driver more time in Duncan doing traffic lights and other driving conditions not encountered on Salt Spring Island. We can provide pricing on lessons that are longer than our standard 90 minute lessons.

The Salt Spring Island ferry approaching the Crofton terminal (photo: West Coast Driver Training)
The Salt Spring Island ferry approaching the Crofton terminal (photo: West Coast Driver Training)

Here is a link the BC Ferries schedule for Vesuvius Bay on Salt Spring Island to Crofton, north of Duncan.

Here is a map showing the location of the BC Ferries terminal at Crofton:

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One Of Our Clients, Sierra Robinson, Doing A Ted Talk

Earlier today one of my clients, Sierra Robinson, did her Class 7 N Road Test in our 2020 Prius Prime. She did really well on her Road Test and passed handily.

But as we were waiting at ServiceBC in Duncan just prior to her Road Test, Sierra told me that the stress of waiting to do her Class 7 Road Test was similar to the stress she felt before doing her TED Talk.

I didn’t know Sierra had done a TED Talk so I looked it up on YouTube afterwards.

Here is Sierra Robinson’s TED Talk from October 2019 (posted here with her mother’s permission):

Congratulations to Sierra Robinson on her very interesting TED Talk and on passing her Class 7 N Road Test today.

And for all my clients who feel that stress before their Road Tests, take some inspiration from Sierra’s demonstration that you can deal with that stress and perform really well in spite of it, whether it is doing a TED Talk or passing your Road Test.

Our 2020 Toyota Prius Prime is now available for lessons (photo: West Coast Driver Training)
Our 2020 Toyota Prius Prime (photo: West Coast Driver Training)