Seán Canney TD, Minister with responsibility for Road Safety, has noted the latest driving test waiting time figures, which show the national average waiting time across car, truck and bus tests at 10.6 weeks at the end of December 2025, just above the 10-week Service Level Agreement.

The figures follow the implementation of a targeted action plan by the Road Safety Authority at the direction of Minister Canney in April 2025, when average waiting times had risen to 27 weeks.

Minister Canney said sustaining progress on waiting times remains a key priority within his road safety remit.

“Since April, the RSA has been implementing a focused plan to bring waiting times back to sustainable levels at my direction. The latest figures show that this work continues to deliver, with the national average across all test categories now at 10.6 weeks,” Minister Canney said.

The figures reflect an intensive effort by the RSA to reduce waiting times, including the use of overtime and additional testing capacity. The service now has 196 full-time operational testers and further testers are being trained at present.

He acknowledged that pressures remain in some individual test centres.

“I recognise that waiting times are still not acceptable in every location. Where delays remain excessive, this is not good enough. I am monitoring performance on an ongoing basis and will continue to engage closely with the RSA to ensure improvements are delivered and maintained,” he said.

Minister Canney also highlighted the significant operational focus on truck and bus testing, which is critical to road safety and to the functioning of the transport and logistics sectors. In 2025, a total of 15,363 truck and bus tests were carried out.

Progress is also being made on the opening of new centres. A new centre at Mitchelstown opened in December 2025, while the opening of centres in Drogheda and Sandyford is imminent.

He noted that demand for driving tests remains higher than normal, with 18,815 applications received in December alone, and confirmed that tester recruitment, overtime and extended testing arrangements will continue into 2026.

“Ensuring timely access to driving tests is essential for road safety, for learners, and for industry. I will continue to work closely with the RSA to ensure waiting times continue to move in the right direction and that progress is sustained,” Minister Canney said.

He concluded: “Essentially this is about making our roads safer for everyone and moving towards Vision Zero – no road deaths by 2050.”