Driver test waiting times 'disproportionately' affecting people in rural areas - TDs
The "crisis in driver test waiting times" is disproportionately affecting people who live in rural areas and towns, a TD has warned in the Dáil,
The Social Democrats TD for Cork East, Liam Quaide, said he has been contacted by numerous people living in his constituency who have highlighted in particular how young people who need to travel by car to college or work are unable to get a test date.
The Sinn Féin TD for Galway East, Louis O'Hara, also said that "being able to drive is an absolute necessity for any young person who lives in a rural community" but the reality is that people are now "waiting months on end for their driving tests".
His Sinn Féin colleague, Darren O'Rourke, pointed out during a Dáil debate on driver test waiting times that the Road Safety Authority (RSA) has a statutory maximum target of 10 weeks from the time a learner driver books their test until they are given a date to sit the test.
"The last time that target was reached was in July 2022, almost three years ago," the Meath East TD said.
The Minister of State at the Department of Transport, Seán Canney, acknowledged to the Dáil that "current wait times are far in excess of the ten week target".
"At the end of April, wait times had grown to 27 weeks on average nationally, while in the locations with most demand this was in excess of 40 weeks," the minister said.
"This is an unacceptable amount of time to be waiting for a test and it has been trending in the wrong direction.
"These rising wait times have been driven by rapidly increasing demand as the population has grown.
"This demand can be seen by the number of learner permits in circulation and the record number of advanced driving instructors now working in the sector to deliver lessons to drivers," Minister Canney said.
However he said that the RSA has recruited additional driver testers and with "the first new recruits entering service in April, we should see some progress in reducing waiting times by the end of May".
But the Sinn Féin TD for Donegal, Pádraig Mac Lochlainn, said that he believed the "RSA appears not to be fit for purpose when it comes to driving tests and management of the system".
According to Deputy Mac Lochlainn, the difficulties in securing a driver test continues to have a major impact in rural counties.
"The Minister of State knows that public transport just does not work across rural counties like Donegal.
"People do need to have cars to get to their places of education and work in order to provide for their families. It is just unacceptable," he added.
