More than 130,000 driving tests released ‘to end Glastonbury-style waiting list’

Learner drivers face an enormous waiting list (Picture: Shutterstock / Bjoern Wylezich)

A massive backlog that has left wannabe drivers waiting months for their test should be cleared by summer 2026, the Department for Transport has announced.

Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander said the current situation – with a record number of people on the waiting list – is ‘totally unacceptable’.

Learner drivers have described being told there are 23,000 people ahead of them in the queue, after tests were suspended over the Covid lockdowns.

In an appearance in front of the Transport Select Committee this morning, Alexander outlined her department’s plan for tackling the backlog with the aim of securing at least 10,000 extra driving tests every month.

She explained that she had instructed the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA), the government organisation responsible for carrying out driving tests, to offer additional overtime incentive pay to those willing to fit more tests into their schedules.

DVSA staff who are qualified to carry out the tests will also be asked to return to the front line voluntarily.

Meanwhile, the number of permanent trainers for driving examiners will be doubled.

Alexander also announced a consultation into the booking system, to try and tackle the issue of bots that are ‘frankly exploiting learners at the moment’.

The package of announcements should mean the waiting time for those booking their tests should hit the government target of seven weeks by summer next year, the Transport Secretary said.

Heidi Alexander inherited a huge backlog of driving tests (Picture: Wiktor Szymanowicz/Anadolu via Getty Images)

She said: ‘We inherited an enormous backlog of learners ready to ditch their L-plates but being forced to endure record waiting time for their tests.

‘We simply cannot deliver on our Plan for Change if thousands remain held back, with their aspirations on pause.

‘I am instructing DVSA to take further action immediately to reduce waiting times which will see thousands of additional tests made available every month. We’re acting fast to get Britain’s drivers moving.’

Last year, DVSA delivered a record number of driving tests with 1.95 million carried out across the UK – but the crisis has grown regardless.

Sara Thornton, from Aylesbury, told Metro earlier this month she struggled to book a slot for her son Henry Thornton-Izzard, who had been trying to get a licence for years since the Covid pandemic.

The mum-of-two said: ‘My frustration on Monday reached new levels when I logged on at 6am.

‘I checked and I was 23,000th on the queue – as if it was for Glastonbury tickets.

‘It is a government service, not Wimbledon or Harry Styles.’

In the end, she managed to grab a slot for him in Lowestoft in September – around 150 miles from the Buckinghamshire roads Henry has practised on.

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