Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 15 January 2026
131. Deputy Barry Heneghan asked the Minister for Transport the additional measures he is considering to further reduce driving test waiting times towards the ten week target, including any operational or administrative changes within the Road Safety Authority; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2668/26]
Amharc ar fhreagra142. Deputy Conor D. McGuinness asked the Minister for Transport the way in which he plans to lower the backlog of diving test waiting times in Waterford given the fact that Waterford has one of the highest, if not the highest, backlogs for those waiting for tests, per-capita, in the country. [2867/26]
Amharc ar fhreagraI propose to take Questions Nos. 131 and 142 together.
Under the Road Safety Authority Act 2006, the Road Safety Authority (RSA) has statutory responsibility for the National Driver Testing Service, including the provision of test centres. Neither I nor my officials are involved in the service at an operational level.
Since taking office, reducing driver test waiting times has been a key priority for me. To that end in May 2025 I directed the RSA to produce and publish a service recovery plan to meet the 10-week average national waiting time target by September 2025, which the RSA achieved. While there has been a small increase in average wait times in Q4 2025 the latest information available to me from the RSA indicates that the average national waiting time for a driving test was 10.6 weeks at the end of December. This marks a significant improvement on the 27-week average wait time in April 2025.
Figures provided to me by the RSA indicate that there are now 30 test centres operating at or below the agreed Service Level Agreement target of 10 weeks. In addition, a further 11 centres record an average wait time of 11 or 12 weeks which does reflect an overall improvement. I am informed that the average wait time in Waterford at the end of December was 13 weeks. It is important that the RSA continues to focus on reducing waiting times in the 26 centres, including Waterford, which remain remain above target.
In September 2024, my Department conveyed sanction for 70 additional driver testing posts on a permanent basis, bringing the permanent sanction to 200, which represents a doubling of permanent posts since June 2022. At the end of December, 196 testers were in place, which marks a significant increase on the 151 available at the beginning of 2025. The RSA is working to reach its full complement of 200 testers and I am informed that it is planning to have 200 testers in place by February this year subject to a successful recruitment campaign.
In addition the RSA has indicated that overtime and bank holiday testing will continue in 2026. This will also allow the RSA to mitigate the impact on testing during winter months as a result of shorter days and inclement weather. I would also highlight that, to manage demand effectively at national level, testers, although formally assigned to specific centres, are routinely deployed to other locations as required.
In addition to recruiting more driver testers the RSA is continuing to increase the number of test centres. A new test centre opened in Mitchelstown in December and I am informed that new test centres in Drogheda and Sandyford will be operational shortly. This should assist in reducing average wait times in those areas.
Finally, the driver testing booking system now makes available cancelled test slots for candidates to take up at short notice. I would encourage learner drivers awaiting a test to monitor this channel, which may provide an opportunity to book an earlier testing date.
