Pa Daly (Kerry, Sinn Fein)
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138. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the measures he is taking to address the backlog in driving tests; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9424/25]

Peter Cleere (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail)
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172. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the current wait times at driving test centres across the country, with a specific breakdown for counties Carlow and Kilkenny; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [8893/25]

Darragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal East, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 138 and 172 together.

Under the Road Safety Authority Act 2006, the Road Safety Authority (RSA) has statutory responsibility for the National Driver Testing Service. This includes all application and scheduling matters.

Given the RSA's responsibility in this matter, I have referred the Deputy's question to the RSA for direct, detailed reply. Please contact my private office if a response is not received within ten days.

On the issue of delays in obtaining a driving test more generally, current waiting times are far in excess of what is acceptable and I would like to assure the Deputies that measures have been taken to address the issue.

To support the RSA in increasing testing capacity and improving service delivery, in September 2024 my Department sanctioned an additional 70 permanent positions for driver testers. This increases the total permanent sanction for testers to 200, which represents a doubling of permanent posts since June 2022.

As a condition of sanction, the RSA was required to put a plan in place to restore the 10-week waiting time target as soon as possible. I understand that recruitment is well underway, with a panel now in place and the first new testers to commence training in the coming weeks. As additional testers progressively enter the system and increase testing capacity, I expect that we will to see progress on reducing waiting times towards the 10-week target in the months ahead.

The deputies may wish to note that the RSA publish detailed monthly information on the driver testing service on the CSO website, including the breakdown of waiting times and distribution of testing capacity by test centre. This information is available at the following link: .