Independent TD Mattie McGrath has reacted to the number of people waiting to be scheduled for a driving test as alarming.
It's after the RSA confirmed to the Tipperary politician that nationally almost 45,000 applicants are waiting to receive a test date.
Deputy McGrath was speaking after the RSA confirmed to him in a parliamentary reply that nationally, a total of 44,746 applicants are waiting to be scheduled for a test:
“These figures go to the heart of what I and others have been saying for some time now; that there is a chronic backlog afflicting this sector which in turn is creating serious knock-on consequences".
According to the Tipperary TD, the RSA has taken on 23 new Testers since 2016, but that only six of those will have commenced operating by this year.
McGrath continued to say that "in my county of Tipperary there are 1700 people waiting to be scheduled a driving test. This demonstrates the enormity of the problem at the local level".
He says this creates massive levels of frustration for the public.
Tipperary TD Mattie McGrath spoke to Beat News journalist Debbie Ridgard about the situation:
