The Long Wait For Driving Tests Continues As Numbers Of Testers Fall

Learner drivers in Co. Cork are still having to wait almost 5 months for a test.

Figures released to Aontú through a PQ (Parliamentary Question) show that in the Mallow test centre 3,189 are waiting for tests, while in Ballincollig that figure rises to 1,618 with Wilton having 10,653 on the list.

Today, Aontú’s Becky Kealy, who is standing in the Kanturk LEA in June’s local elections, has questioned why, despite the lengthy waiting times and the large number of applicants, the numbers of driving testers have actually decreased nationally.

“Last year there were 145 testers, this year its 137, so to use a motoring parlance, the whole thing is going in reverse“.

“This is quite incredible. How are we ever going to sort this issue out if the basics are not in place. I think having enough driving testers is pretty fundamental to coming to grips with the long waiting times”.

“This is like Groundhog Day. We’ve been hearing excuses and promises from successive governments on the issue of driving test waiting lists for years, but none has taken the issue by the scruff of the neck and put common sense measures in place to tackle it. There’s no question but there should be more testers, and tests on public holidays or at weekends to tackle the backlog. This isn’t rocket science.

People are suffering because of these delays, and parents of learner permit holders in Cork for example who have to accompany their son or daughter to college or work each day are being impacted. We all know that public transport in rural Ireland is patchy to say the least.It is illegal for a person to drive unaccompanied and as a result people in rural areas just can’t get to work or to any other place they want to go if they don’t have a licence to drive.

Not all of the people are youngsters either and may not have anybody in their households to accompany them. The knock-on ramifications are huge, both environmentally and socially, and at a time when road deaths are spiraling it is incumbent on this Government to sort this issue out and ensure that those who do drive on our roads are actually qualified to do so“.