Seán Canney TD, Minister with responsibility for Road Safety, has confirmed that a major milestone has been reached, with the average national waiting time for a driving test now restored to 10 weeks. This marks a dramatic improvement from a waiting time of 27 weeks earlier this year.
Minister Canney said: “I am very pleased that we have achieved our target of restoring average waiting times for a driving test to 10 weeks by September. This represents a major improvement from the position in April, when waiting times had reached an unacceptable 27 weeks. I want to thank the Road Safety Authority, the Testing Service and my Officials for their commitment and hard work in delivering this progress.”
The Minister added that, with this milestone now achieved, he will now be working with the RSA and his officials to:
- Ensure that all test centres’ waiting times are reduced to 10 weeks or lower. At present, 43 test centres are already meeting or exceeding this target, with just 13 above.
- Ensure that a clear plan is in place so that waiting times remain at or below target, and progress is not lost.
- Deal with the high rate of candidates failing to attend their driving test.
- Introduce the necessary regulations to deal with the issue of multiple learner permits.
The Minister also welcomed strong progress on non-car driving tests: in August alone, 1,332 truck and bus tests were carried out, marking a 53% increase on July’s figures.
Minister Canney concluded: “Getting waiting times under control was the first step. Now we must build on this progress by addressing the broader issues in the driver testing system, so that it is fair, efficient, and supports road safety. The overall objective is to reduce road deaths as we work towards Vision Zero. My aim is to ensure that everyone, no matter where they live, can access a driving test within 10 weeks and that the system is working to help learner drivers move forward in a timely and responsible way.”
