New Cork driving test centre offers hope for 6,500 on waiting list

By Peter McCarthy, Corkman

Mitchelstown is set to get a new driving test centre next month, which it is hoped will help to cut waiting lists in Cork where almost 6,500 learner drivers are waiting to do their test.

The Road Safety Authority (RSA) has confirmed that it is now in the final stages of a lease agreement for a new driving test centre in the north Cork town. The centre is expected to open in November and is part of a national plan to reduce waiting times to an average of 10 weeks.

The new centre should take some of the pressure off Cork’s three existing driving test centres of Wilton, Mallow, and Skibbereen. Wilton, one of the five busiest test centres in the country, currently has 4,403 applicants waiting on a test with a wait time of 16 weeks.

The Mallow test centre has 1,496 on its waiting list with a wait time of 15 weeks while in Skibbereen there are 596 awaiting a test with a wait time of 9 weeks. Of the 6,495 people who’ve applied for a driving test in Cork, around a third (2,071) have been given a test date.

East Cork TD James O’Connor has welcomed the announcement, saying he has frequently raised Cork’s lengthy waiting list with the RSA.

“The waiting times currently being experienced in Wilton, Mallow, and Skibbereen are unacceptable and far too long. Many people rely on access to a car for employment, education, and daily life, so reducing these delays is absolutely essential,” the Fianna Fáil deputy said.

“I look forward to seeing the Mitchelstown driving test centre open in November and to the positive impact it will have in reducing waiting times for applicants across the region.”

Across the country driving test applications remain at record levels, with 192,373 applications received between January and August 2025. More than 74,000 driving tests were carried out between June and August, according to RSA figures.