Jerry Buttimer (Cork South-Central, Fine Gael)

I thank Senators for the opportunity to address them on the issue of the national driver testing service. As they are aware, the Road Safety Authority, RSA, has statutory responsibility for the national driver testing service under the Road Safety Authority Act 2006. The service has a target average waiting time of ten weeks from when someone applies to sit a test to when that test should take place. As we all know quite well, however, in recent years that target has not been met, with current waiting times far in excess of the ten weeks. They are unacceptably high. The most recent data available as at the end of April indicates that waiting times have grown to an average of 27 weeks nationally, while in the locations with the highest demand, they can be in excess of 40 weeks, which we all find intolerable.

I acknowledge the genuine, legitimate concerns and frustrations of all Senators and the public regarding this issue. As a constituency politician, I am fully aware of the frustration and annoyance felt by so many of our fellow citizens. This situation is having a very negative impact across the country and it is vital that an efficient and dependable driver testing service is restored as quickly as possible. Since coming to office, my colleague the Minister of State, Deputy Canney, has prioritised this matter and engaged with the members of the RSA leadership team to discuss their plans for restoring the service to the target waiting time. The Minister of State has made it clear to the RSA that after several years of significant delays in obtaining tests, people cannot wait another six months for the service to be restored.

Last week, the Minister of State again met with the RSA and the authority committed to reducing the average waiting time to 22 weeks by the end of May, to 18 weeks by the end of June and to the service being returned to the target average waiting time of ten weeks by early September at the latest. There can be no deviation from this timeline. The RSA has been instructed to endure contingency plans and remedial measures are put in place and ready to be deployed to ensure no slippage occurs. In addition, at the direction of the Minister of State, the RSA will on Thursday this week publish its plan to restore the service to the ten-week waiting period. I welcome the actions outlined in this plan. It is vital that they are implemented and delivered on fully as soon as possible. The authority will now report to the Minister of State fortnightly and publish its progress against these targets, including projected waiting times and driver testing numbers by centre. This information will ensure greater transparency in relation to the steps being taken to address this issue. It will also ensure that the public will be better informed about the progress being made.

The Department of Transport is continuing to support the RSA in meeting current demand and in addressing capacity issues in the service. To that end, sanction was issued in September 2024 for up to 200 permanent driver testers. This allows for the recruitment of up to 70 additional driver testers on a permanent basis and represents a doubling of the comparable sanction in place in June 2022, when the permanent headcount stood at 100 driver testers. Recruitment is ongoing, but time is needed for a national competition of this scale. It is positive, however, that the first tranche of the new driver testers was deployed in April 2025 and is now conducting tests. I understand these testers have their home bases in counties like Cork and Dublin, but it is important to note that the driver testers can be deployed anywhere in the country in response to demand pressures. As additional testers enter the system and are assigned across the country, testing capacity will increase and progress should be seen in reducing waiting times in the months ahead.

In March 2023, sanction for up to 75 additional driver testers on fixed-term contracts of up to two years resulted in the average waiting time for tests being significantly improved from a peak of 30.4 weeks in August 2023 to 14.9 weeks in April 2024. The RSA expects a similar positive impact on wait times as the additional permanent driver testers come on stream. While the growth in wait times is unacceptable, it has arisen due to a fundamental mismatch between the demand for driving tests and available testing capacity in the RSA in recent years. Following Covid, a large backlog of tests had built up. However, incoming demand is now at record and growing levels, driven by factors such as inward migration and a rising population, meaning the significant backlog has persisted. This demand can be seen in the number of learner permits in circulation and the record number of advanced driving instructors working in the sector to deliver lessons to learners.

My time has elapsed, so I will conclude by saying I am acutely aware of the frustration and hardship caused by excessive wait times. All Ministers in the Department are actively engaging with the RSA on accelerating recruitment and deployment of additional driver testers. The fortnightly reporting will be a benchmark and will be an accountable piece that was not available heretofore. I look forward to hearing suggestions and solutions from Members. We have articulated, quite rightly, the problems and it is about getting solutions now.