Introduction
The Chair of the Transport Committee has written to the Minister for Roads and Buses to find out what is being done to tackle the long waiting times for car driving tests.
The full letter can be viewed below.
Key Takeaways
In the letter to Simon Lightwood, Ruth Cadbury expresses deep concern over the “slow and limited progress” made in reducing waiting times for practical tests.
She points to sources showing that waiting times remained “persistently high” throughout 2025 with only a “modest improvement” seen at the start of 2026 – namely the reduction to 21.2 weeks in January (from a previous high of 22.5 weeks).
The National Audit Office reported in December that the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) does not now expect to reach its target waiting time of seven weeks until November 2027.
In the letter, the Chair asks the Minister to confirm whether the DVSA is on track to meet this revised target.
She also asks the Minister about the issue of driving instructors no longer being permitted to book driving tests on behalf of learners, an issue highlighted in the recent NASP letter, and requests information about the use of Ministry of Defence driving examiners to help deliver tests.
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