Waiting time for Mayo driving tests quadruples in three years
Mayo Senator Mark Duffy, FG Seanad spokesperson on Transport, has called on the government and the RSA to do everything within its power to tackle the driving test waiting lists which have seen dramatic increases in recent months.
He elaborated: "With 83,486 people waiting for tests it’s simply not good enough and urgently needs to be addressed.’
"In April of 2022 Ballina and Castlebar had waiting times of six weeks and three weeks respectively, those waiting times in April of 2025 have gone up to 27 weeks in Ballina and 25 weeks in the case of Castlebar – a quadrupling of waiting times over that period of time.
"That equates to 485 people waiting on tests in Ballina and over 1,000 in Castlebar.
The Road Safety Authority recently announced plans to reduce waiting times to 10 weeks by September and is engaged in a major recruitment drive at present.
The RSA has been sanctioned to recruit up to 200 more driving test examiners which is double that of two years ago while there are also plans for additional over-time, temporary re-hiring of retired testers and extending driving tests to weekends and public holidays.
Senator Duffy referred to the real-life implications these delays are having on people and gave the example of a special needs assistant from Belmullet who urgently needs to sit her driving test so that she can commute to work every day.
"My role requires me not only to support students during the school day, but also to act as a bus escort for children with high dependency needs.
"This means early starts and late finishes, and reliable transport is essential for me to fulfil my duties. Being able to drive independently would ensure I can continue supporting the children in my care, both in school and during transport, without putting additional pressure on my family," he said.
Senator Duffy added that ‘bashing the RSA is easy, but we need to do more to support the RSA on this issue because it is affecting the economy and it’s affecting society in a pronounced way.’
He went on to invite the Minister to meet with the RSA, based in Ballina, and hoped that such a visit would help reinvigorate the authority which has been subject to a lot of criticism on this issue.