Learner drivers in Dún Laoghaire, Co Dublin are waiting 21 weeks for a driving test, the longest waiting time in the State and more than twice the 10-week national target.
The average waiting time to be called for a test nationally has risen from 10 to 12 weeks since the target was reached last September, the latest data shows.
There were 5,356 people waiting for tests in Dún Laoghaire last month, which local Fine Gael TD Barry Ward described as an “extraordinary number”.
“Since January 2025 it has never been lower than 4,500 people waiting for tests,” he said.
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Based on reports from those contacting his constituency office, Ward said some “people are waiting 30 weeks and more”, with 21 weeks representing the waiting time to be called for a test.
In contrast, the shortest waiting times, eight weeks, were recorded at centres in Kilrush, Co Clare and Newcastle West, Co Limerick.
Mulhuddart in west Dublin has the second longest waiting time at 20 weeks. There were 2,771 learners waiting for a test last July, but this had risen to 2,884 by January.
Fine Gael Dublin West TD Emer Currie said the latest Road Safety Authority’s (RSA) estimates showed applicants for the Mulhuddart centre were being offered invitations for late July, a wait of some 20 weeks.
“We need to move from test wait-time ‘targets’ to a consistent and stabilised waiting period of 10 weeks, with every test centre being prioritised rather than a national average,” she said. “Because places like Mulhuddart are consistently left behind.”
The RSA said the national average waiting time increased to 11.5 weeks at the end of February, coinciding with a 25 per cent increase in applications in the first two months of this year when compared with the same period in 2025.
However, figures compiled by road safety campaign group Parc from the RSA website show the national average waiting time was 12 weeks as of March 13th.
Parc cofounder Susan Gray said the only time the RSA met its target was when Minister of State Seán Canney instructed that he wanted the national average waiting time down to 10 weeks by last September.
“They got it down then but never since,” she said. “We’re calling for the Minister to keep a close eye on them again because they really do need the head teacher to be watching them.”
Minister for Transport Darragh O’Brien said a new test centre in Sandyford, which would ease pressure on Dún Laoghaire, was at final stages of preparation. He said: “The RSA is just one party to the agreement of leases and private landlords must also go through their due diligence and assurance processes.”
Replying to Ward in the Dáil, O’Brien said he had “a degree of frustration” in giving this answer “because we have been aware of this issue with regard to the new test centre for some time”.
The centre’s opening was announced last April, the Minister said, adding that he would raise the issue with Canney and “see how we can expedite this”.
The RSA acknowledged that the 21-week waiting time in Dún Laoghaire “remains too high”. It said the situation “has been exacerbated by very high traffic volumes in the area, which is restricting the number of tests that can be carried out” and the delayed opening of the Sandyford centre.
It said lease negotiations had taken longer than originally anticipated “due to factors outside of the RSA’s control”.
“We remain optimistic that the outstanding legal and operational matters will be concluded shortly.”
The RSA has also not reached a goal of having 200 full-time driving testers, with the number in place falling in February from 196 to 194. It said “there have been a small number of retirees in recent months and the RSA is in the process of making job offers to candidates”.
