Driving test waits fall to two-year low - but still average 20 weeks

Waiting times for driving tests have dropped below 20 weeks for the first time since November 2024, official figures show. Learner drivers in September still faced an average wait of 19.7 weeks, roughly five months, for a practical test. The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) has been working to cut waiting times and clear a backlog that began during the Covid pandemic in 2020. Commenting on the agency's progress, one driving teacher told the BBC: "I don't deliberation this is thing to boast about." The DVSA originally aimed to reduce the mean waiting time to seven weeks by the end of last year. Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander moved the target to summer 2026, but later admitted even that would not be possible, with waits not expected to fall to seven weeks until until adjacent autumn. In September the DVSA conducted 191,682 practical driving tests, and more than half of those resulted in a pass. Learner drivers have repeatedly told the BBC that limited access to tests constrains their freedom, education and job prospects. Until earlier this year many learners paid inflated prices for tests resold by third‑party providers who used automated programmes or bots to snap up slots before learners could book them. The DVSA has since changed the test booking system to stop the exploitation, and now only the learner driver is able to book their driving test. Read the full story at BBC News →