Kildare TD Calls For €100 Leap Card Credit For Learner Drivers Facing Lengthy Test Delays

Thursday, 19 June 2025 10:38

By Martin Osborne

Kildare currently has over 4,000 people waiting to sit their driving test, with average delays stretching up to 30 weeks at some centres – significantly higher than the national average of 20.6 weeks.

Young drivers in stuck in limbo while waiting months for a driving test should be offered a €100 credit on their Leap cards to encourage public transport use, a local TD has suggested.

Kildare North Social Democrats TD Aidan Farrelly raised the proposal in the Dáil, suggesting the measure be considered in the upcoming Budget as a practical support for learner drivers - particularly in counties like Kildare where test delays are among the worst in the country.

Deputy Farrelly proposed a €100 credit be loaded onto the Leap cards who have been waiting more than 10 to 12 weeks, helping offset costs while incentivising the use of available public transport, such as Iarnród Éireann services or the Local Link network.

As previously reported by Kfm, the county has over 43,600 learner permit holders, and Gardaí issued more than 10,500 fines last year to unaccompanied learner drivers.

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