Driving Tests: Waiting Lists
(asked on 26th March 2026) - View Source
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what progress she has made to help reduce waiting times for driving tests in (a) Surrey and (b) Surrey Heath constituency.
The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) is working hard to reduce waiting times for car practical tests whilst upholding road safety standards. DVSA wants all learners to be able to access a driving test when they are ready to pass, to enable people to get to places of study or work and break down barriers to opportunity.
The table below shows the February 2026 average waiting time and number of tests booked and available at the driving test centres (DTCs) serving Hampshire and Surrey as of 23 March 2026. (DTCs in bold are the main DTCs serving Surrey Heath.
Driving test centre (DTC) | Average car practical driving test waiting time in weeks (February 2026) | Booked tests (as of 23 March 2026) | Tests available in 24 week booking window (as of 23 March 2026) |
Basingstoke | 24 | 1,037 | 38 |
Chertsey | 24 | 2,819 | 145 |
Farnborough | 24 | 3,945 | 129 |
Guildford | 24 | 810 | 38 |
Lee on Solent | 24 | 2,319 | 101 |
Mitcham | 24 | 5,854 | 198 |
Newport (Isle of Wight) | 24 | 1,401 | 59 |
Portsmouth | 24 | 6,214 | 262 |
Redhill | 24 | 1,797 | 81 |
Southampton | 24 | 4,802 | 223 |
Tolworth | 24 | 2,986 | 80 |
West Wickam | 24 | 3,274 | 141 |
Winchester | 16.5 | 1,585 | 67 |
Great Britain (National) | 21.6 weeks | 644,851 | 46,926 |
Between June 2025 – February 2026, at the DTCs above, DVSA conducted 2,996 additional car practical driving tests in overtime, when compared to the equivalent overtime scheme between June 2024 – February 2025. This increase can largely be attributed to the additional test allowance scheme the agency introduced in June 2025.