Two weeks ago, the waiting time was 14.1 weeks, and at the end of April, the waiting time peaked, with a 27-week wait.

The RSA said it remains firmly on track to achieve its goal of reducing average waiting times to 10 weeks by September 2025.

Michael Murphy, the Chair of the Oireachtas Transport Committee, has urged the RSA to outline plans to address the issue of waiting times when they come before the Transport Committee.

Throughout last year, there were 46 cases where a person was involved in a crash during their driving test.

Officials warned this would end up “causing extra stress on the already overburdened testing system”, according to records they released.

Minister for Education, Norma Foley has been involved in discussions with the RSA around the new short course which will be taught in transition year.

In some cases, learners have been driving on for over 30 years without ever holding a full licence