Driving test delays for over 30,000 in Limerick branded as a 'scandal'

NEW FIGURES showing a 37% increase in the number of learner drivers caught driving unaccompanied in Limerick has been branded as a “scandal”. 

Figures released to the Irish Road Haulage Association (IRHA) under FOI by the Road Safety Authority (RSA) show over 32,742 drivers in Limerick are on a provisional license.  

In Limerick, there were 89 unaccompanied drivers caught by gardaí in the final three months of 2024 compared to 65 in the same period in 2023, approximately a 37% increase.

Irish Hauliers are now saying the RSA is “mismanaging” the driving test system and IRHA president Ger Hyland has described it as a scandal. He is calling for a root and branch review of the RSA and its operation of the Irish driving test system. 

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Calling for a “radical overhaul” of the system, Mr Hyland said:  “The current 40-minute driving test allows for an approximate driving time of between 15 and 20 minutes, often in heavy urban slow-moving traffic. 

“This would be a great test of one’s ability to sit in a traffic jam, but if we are honestly testing driving skills and driver preparedness, the test as it stands is a shambolic exercise in raising funds for the RSA. 

“The increases in the numbers of learner drivers caught driving unaccompanied is only the ones gardaí are catching, and we feel this is just the tip of the iceberg.”

Additionally, the IRHA claims that an “inadequate and backlogged” test system is “forcing young learner drivers out on roads” without a full license and an accompanying fully licensed driver.  

According to the IRHA, young drivers, in particular in rural Ireland, need their car to get to work or college and significant delays in the driver testing system are forcing young learner drivers to make difficult choices.

The association has called for driver education to be a part of the school curriculum and has suggested that each student would be tested in their ability to drive before they leave secondary school.