Manitoba Public Insurance (MPI) has announced that one of its permanent service locations has reopened for the first time since its closure in 2020.

The Portage la Prairie Service Centre in 2007 Saskatchewan Ave. W., Portage la Prairie reopened this week on April 25. According to MPI, the location was closed in November 2020 as it was repurposed as a COVID-19 testing site by Shared Health.

The centre will once again provide front counter and claim services, and all knowledge tests and road tests for driver’s license Classes 4, 5, and 6 will be conducted, MPI said in a release. But road tests for Classes 1, 2, and 3 will continue to be conducted at the mall location at 2450 Saskatchewan Ave. W. until further notice.

Apart from administering Manitoba’s public auto insurance, MPI is also responsible for overseeing motor vehicle registration and driver licensing in the province.

Read more: MPI lifts mandatory mask ruling

MPI last month announced that it was following Manitoba’s health orders which lifted mandatory mask usage, but added that it would remain “mask-friendly” to allow customers to wear a mask whenever they visit the insurer’s service and claim centres.

Read more: MPI to transfer capital to driver and vehicle licensing division

And earlier this month, the Crown corporation said that it would be completing its previously announced plan to transfer an estimated $65 million worth of funds from its non-compulsory auto insurance extension business into its driver and vehicle licensing line – a function that it says “has never been properly funded.”