I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Feighan. The next Commencement matter is in the name of Senator Kennelly. It relates to the establishment of driving test centres, in particular in Listowel, County Kerry. As there is a list of every test centre in The Irish Times today, it is very topical that he should be raising this issue. The floor is his.

I was unaware of that to be honest. I must get a copy of The Irish Times. I welcome the Minister of State to the Seanad. I wish to raise with him the urgent need for the provision of an additional Road Safety Authority driving test centre in north Kerry to serve communities such as Listowel, Ballybunnion, Tarbert, Moyvane, Ballyduff and surrounding areas. It is a huge area.

At present, County Kerry is served by just two main test centres for standard driving tests in Tralee and Killarney. This is despite the fact that very significant demand exists across the region. Figures provided by the RSA show that in 2025 alone, 3,736 tests were conducted in Tralee and 3,933 in Killarney, with a further 1,346 tests in Tralee and 1,477 in Killarney in the first four months of 2026. These figures clearly demonstrate the volume of demand already being handled by these limited centres. However, even more concerning are the waiting lists. In Tralee, the number of applicants waiting for a driving test invitation has consistently remained too high altogether, fluctuating between 900 and more than 1,000 people through 2025, reaching 1,009 in April of this year.

Similarly, in Killarney, hundreds remain waiting at any given time, with 714 applicants still awaiting as of April 2026. This means that across Kerry alone, more than 1,500 people are typically waiting for a test invitation at any one time. That does not account for those who must reapply after unsuccessful attempts. The data on passes and failures further underline the pressure on the system. In 2025 there were 1,876 passes and 1,481 failures in Tralee. In Killarney there were 1,899 passes and 1,684 failures.

They are back in the system again, and maybe for the third time.

This shows that a substantial number of applicants do not pass on their first or second attempt, and must re-enter the system, often facing the same long waiting periods again for a second or even third test. The result is a compounding backlog, which is why my Commencement matter is of the highest importance.

For people in north Kerry, the impact is particularly severe. Residents of north Kerry must travel considerable distances - it is wide open territory - most often to Tralee, and in some cases Killarney, for both lessons and tests. This places an added financial and logistical burden on learner drivers and their families, especially in a rural area with limited public transport options.

The Listowel municipal district alone has a population of approximately 32,000 people, representing a substantial demand base that is not being directly served by a local test centre. Given the scale of demand, the consistently high waiting times and the additional pressures created by repeat tests, there is a strong and evidence-based case for the RSA to reassess north Kerry. Has a detailed demand and capacity assessment been undertaken specifically for north Kerry, including the Listowel municipal district area? If not, can we initiate one as soon as possible? Will consideration be given to establishing a driving test centre in Listowel or providing a part-time or outreach service in the area? Can immediate measures be introduced to reduce waiting times, especially acknowledging the cycle of repeat tests, which is further adding to backlogs?

The current situation in Kerry is not sustainable. It is placing an unfair burden on rural communities and delaying access to employment, education and independence for many people. It is time that north Kerry was properly recognised in the planning of driving test services. The biggest issue we have right now is road safety. People learning how to manoeuvre properly and safely on our roads should do so on their local roads. People travelling 50 or 60 minutes in a car to do a test on a side street in another jurisdiction is just not working, and that is why I am calling for a driving test centre to be located in north Kerry.

I thank Senator Kennelly for raising this matter. As he may be aware, under the Road Safety Authority Act 2006, the Road Safety Authority, or RSA, has statutory responsibility for the national driver testing service. This includes full responsibility for operational matters, including scheduling of tests and all decisions in relation to the opening of new driver testing centre locations. Neither the Minister of State with responsibility for transport or the Department have any function or powers in deciding on the location of new driver testing centres.

Reducing driver testing wait times has been a priority for my colleague, the Minister of State with responsibility for transport, Deputy Canney, since taking office. In May last year, he directed the RSA to produce and publish a service recovery plan to return the national average waiting time to ten weeks by the beginning of September 2025, and this was achieved. The current national average waiting time on 13 June 2026 was 11.6 weeks, which is above the service level agreement of ten weeks. I am informed that the RSA is continuing to focus on addressing centres with higher demand and wait times. However, it should be noted that the driver test service continues to experience high demand, and the number of applications has increased by 17% to the end of May when compared with the same period in 2025.

In respect of County Kerry, I am informed that as of 31 May 2026, the average waiting time for a driving test is 14 weeks in Tralee and 13 weeks in Killarney test centres. While the average wait time remains above the target ten-week period, this marks an improvement on the 16-week average wait times for both Tralee and Killarney test centres in May 2025. In addition, as the Senator will be aware, people seeking a driving test can apply to any test centre. In that regard, he may wish to note that driver testing wait times at the Newcastle West testing centre, which is relatively close to Listowel, stands at 11 weeks as of 31 May 2026.

In September 2024, the Department of Transport conveyed sanction for 70 additional driver testing posts on a permanent basis, bringing the permanent sanction to 200, which represents a doubling of permanent posts since June 2022. As of 13 June 2026, 194 testers were active, with an additional five in training. This marks a significant increase on the 151 available at the beginning of 2025. I am told that the RSA is working to reach its full complement of 200 testers subject to the next successful training and onboarding of new recruits. It is important to note, however, that while a driver tester may be assigned to one centre, testers routinely and regularly move between centres to meet demand. The RSA has also indicated that overtime testing is continuing in 2026.

The driver testing booking system now makes available cancelled test slots for candidates to take up at short notice. On behalf of the Minister of Transport, I encourage learner drivers awaiting a test to monitor this channel, which may provide an opportunity to book an earlier testing date.

The opening of a new centre in Listowel is a matter for the RSA. The authority has indicated that the processes for opening a new driving test centre are informed primarily by sustained demand within a geographic area, operational requirements, accessibility for customers, driver tester capacity and the availability of suitable accommodation and infrastructure. There are no plans to open a driver testing centre in Listowel, and I am told it has not been highlighted by the RSA as a proposed new location within current planning considerations.

I thank Minister of State for his response. As he can see from my data and his data, it is evidently clear that a driving test centre is needed in the north Kerry area. The Minister of State said that the 14-week wait time in Tralee, which is three and a half months, and the 13 weeks in Killarney are improvements on the 16-week average wait times for both centres. Most of the people who are waiting in those areas are from north Kerry, if the Department wants more data.

I urge the Minister of State to contact the RSA to make north Kerry a priority area when choosing a location for a driving test centre. The data is there and the evidence is clear that we need a driver safety testing centre in north Kerry. The RSA said that north Kerry has not been highlighted to it as a new location for a driver testing centre as of yet. I propose that the RSA be notified through the Department, so that we can come to a very easy solution to the problem in north Kerry for new drivers.

I can see that the Senator is disappointed with the response. It is not exactly the response he wanted. The RSA has made good progress over the past year, and it does continue to work hard to manage the backlog in the national driving testing service. It is a priority of my colleague, the Minister of State, Deputy Canney, that the average wait times return to the ten-week target as set out in the service level agreement as soon as possible.

I recognise the challenges that excessive waiting times are imposing on people throughout the county and especially, as the Senator said, in the north of the county. I welcome the Road Safety Authority's commitment to restoring average wait times to the ten-week level, and test centres are still above the national average. However, the Senator has made it clear, and I have heard him loud and clear, that he requires a new test centre in Listowel. I will certainly bring that back to Minister, and again I thank him for raising this important issue.

I thank the Minister of the State for his time. We appreciate him coming to the Seanad.