Hildegarde Naughton (Galway West, Fine Gael)
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The details requested are held by the Road Safety Authority, the statutory body responsible for all aspects of the Driving Test. I have therefore referred this question to the Authority for direct reply. I would ask the Deputy to contact my office if a response has not been received within ten days.

Hildegarde Naughton (Galway West, Fine Gael)
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The Road Safety Authority has statutory responsibility for the operation of the national driving test service.

I understand that due to the COVID pandemic, and the necessary ensuing precautions, a significant driver testing backlog developed. However, once public health restrictions eased, considerable progress has been made in reducing wait times significantly. The Department gave sanction to the Road Safety Authority for the hiring of contracted driver testers on a temporary basis so as to remove the backlog that had built up while the service was restricted in its delivery during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Pre Covid, the target national average wait time for a driving test was 10 weeks and on the eve of the pandemic the actual wait time was approximately six and a half weeks. Increasing to 25 weeks during the pandemic, the pre-pandemic national average target wait of ten weeks was once again achieved by the end of 2021. At the end of October 2022, the national average time to wait for an invitation to test was 15.5 weeks.

I am informed that the current increase in demand for driving tests and the time to invitation for learner drivers has a number of contributing factors which include: an increase in learner permits in circulation which has grown by about 30% since Q3 2019; increased capacity in the Driver Theory Test when the service resumed post Covid-19 pandemic and an increase in Advanced Driving Instructors (ADI's) capacity to deliver lessons to learner drivers which has increased the volume of learners becoming eligible and ready to take their actual test.

I also understand that other factors that contribute to normal driver testing demand include: learner drivers failing their test (53%); those who don't show up on the day of test (2.3%); tests which cannot go ahead on the day (e.g. where a vehicle has no tax or is unroadworthy) (5.1%); tests that are abandoned (e.g. due to weather) (2%) or tests that are cancelled by the RSA, (e.g. due to inclement weather or where a driver tester is suddenly unavailable due to illness) (8%). Finally, of the available capacity on a given week an average of 5% of slots go unused due to late cancellation by the customer or where a customer has not taken up an available slot.

In order to reduce a continued reliance on contracted temporary driver testers to deliver the driver testing service the RSA conducted a review of the current and evolving needs of the driver tester service earlier this year. Following this, my department sanctioned an increase in the permanent driver tester headcount from 100 to 130.

I believe that following a successful recruitment process the RSA is currently deploying a number of successful candidates across the driver testing service, with the remainder being deployed by Q1 2023, by which time it is estimated that a further 450 additional tests will be made available per week. This represents an approximate 13% increase in the number of tests being made available on a weekly basis, which will benefit those geographical areas with the longest waiting lists.

The RSA has assured me that they are keeping the situation under constant review and is in the process of setting out an overlay plan for what is needed to reduce waiting times. I have asked the RSA to report back to my Department on this plan and its implementation as soon as possible.