Thousands of Galwegians are still waiting for a driving test, but with the average waiting time now at six months, the Government must step in to stop that timescale growing longer.
This is the view of Fianna Fáíl senator Ollie Crowe [pictured below], who is calling on the Minister for Transport, Eamon Ryan, to implement a plan which will allow the backlog to be tackled as quickly as possible.
Currently tests are only available for essential workers, but across the State, 62,000 people are waiting for a test. More than 4,800 of these are in Galway. The current wait time is estimated at more than six months as compared to six weeks at the start of 2020.
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Sen Crowe acknowledged that this was understandable given the Covid pandemic, but with the waiting time figures increasing daily, a plan to deal with the backlog needed to be implemented.
“Additional testers should be hired as a matter of priority to allow the backlog to be cleared as soon as possible once testing can resume,” he said. “Many are very concerned about this, as obviously insurance costs are significantly higher for provisional license drivers than full license drivers.”
Driver theory test
Sen Crowe is also calling for the driver theory test, which is a requirement before receiving a provisional license, to become available online. He believes this should be “a relatively straightforward process” which the Department “can implement quickly”.
“Young people have been affected arguably more than anyone during the pandemic,” he said. “Ensuring they can receive their provisional license as soon as possible is one small step which can be quickly taken.”
