[PR] Package To Tackle Driving Test Backlog Announced

Victor

From www.rsa.ie

PACKAGE TO TACKLE DRIVING TEST BACKLOG ANNOUNCED
Average Waiting Time Will Be Under 10 Weeks by Early 2008

The RSA has announced a major package of measures to tackle the backlog of people waiting to take a driving test. The RSA believes these measures will bring waiting times to under a 10 week average across the country by the end of March 2008.

The RSA has completed a recruitment process and will shortly have 126 directly employed driver testers on its staff plus 11 driver testing supervisors. In addition, extra capacity has been secured through the use on contract of 6 retired driver testers.

Capacity has been further enhanced through the involvement of 69 of the RSA’s own testers in a targeted scheme which provides for weekend, evening and early morning testing. The RSA is confident that this scheme will be particularly effective over the summer period as longer hours of daylight will facilitate longer hours of business.

Following public tendering processes two contracts have been let to a private company, SGS Ireland LTD, to carry out driver tests on behalf of the RSA. SGS Group is a Swiss multinational who are one of the world’s largest inspection, testing and verification companies across a range of business sectors.

The first contract provides for SGS to carry out 46,500 driver tests of which some tests have already been completed and the total 46,500 will be completed by September this year. The second contract which begins in July provides for SGS Ireland to deliver a minimum of 100,000 driver tests, over a 15 month period, with the possibility of increasing this in increments of 10,000.

Noel Brett, Chief Executive for the Road Safety Authority stated, “I am confident that the full package of measure we have implemented will bring waiting times to an acceptable level: - That is to under a 10 week average across the country by the end of March 2008. This action is a key building block in reducing deaths and serious injury on Irish roads”.

“We have made significant progress in reducing waiting times and are currently operating at an average of 25 weeks with at total of 135,847 customers awaiting a driving test appointment.

The average waiting time figure of 25 weeks has dropped from 35 weeks a year ago. We are particularly pleased with the commitment shown by our own testing and administrative staff in reducing the time that our customers have to wait for a driving test.”

Mr. Brett added, “It is important that driving test applicants understand the implications of shorter waiting times. They need to have completed their training and be fully prepared as they will find themselves sitting their test a lot sooner than expected”.

The delivery of additional outsourced driving tests will see efforts to tackle the backlog focus on a wider spread of locations across the country. The existing block of 46,500 outsourced driver tests targets the driver test primarly in Dublin, Kildare, Louth and Meath. The new arrangement will see the focus extend nation-wide with test centres opening in areas which have highest waiting times.

In the case of tests with the outsourced provider SGS letters of appointment for driving tests will be issued to candidates who have applied at selected centres approximately 6-8 weeks prior to their test date. The letters will offer candidates a provisional booking date and location for their test. In keeping with good customer service they will be afforded an opportunity to rearrange the time, date and/or test centre through SMS text, lo call number, email, fax or post. Candidates must confirm or rearrange their provisional appointment and can do so only on two occasions, otherwise their name will be deleted from the list and they will have to re-apply for the driving test. Avoiding taking driving test through repeat cancellation is not an option.

We particularly appeal to customers to inform us if they are not able to attend for their driving test so that we can offer the cancellation to another priority candidate.

Ends

invincibleirish

applied for my test last january,still waiting for a date,come on the private sector!

Chris_533976

The average waiting time figure of 25 weeks has dropped from 35 weeks a year ago. We are particularly pleased with the commitment shown by our own testing and administrative staff in reducing the time that our customers have to wait for a driving test.”

I lost faith in that article when I read that.

Will be interesting to see what all this does, if anything. The whole system needs an overhaul, not just a temporary fix, which although welcome, is what this is.

Victor

Chris_533976 wrote:

I lost faith in that article when I read that.

Oh, be very careful. Thats a press relase, not a piece of independent journalism.

Stark

I guess they could calculate "average" either by summing the average waiting time for each centre and dividing it by the number of centres or by summing the waiting time for each person and dividing my the number of people waiting. Then pick the lowest of the two figures and use it for the press release.

spacetweek

It seems to vary widely, because I have anecdotal evidence from several friends who recently took the test that the wait in Dublin at least is now around 14 weeks. I think ~6 weeks should be a long term goal.

Wishbone Ash

Stark wrote:

I guess they could calculate "average" either by summing the average waiting time for each centre and dividing it by the number of centres or by summing the waiting time for each person and dividing my the number of people waiting. Then pick the lowest of the two figures and use it for the press release.

When they specify the waiting time, they don't specify the test category. The test wait time for trucks, buses and motorcycles is generally only a few weeks and therefore this will drag down the average overall wait.

This suits officialdom as most people only associate a driving test with category B vehicles.