Sign of the times: Why foreign drivers failing licence tests are putting L-platers in a jam
Half of all foreign drivers are failing their NSW licence tests - clogging the system and creating roadblocks for those trying to get their P-plates.
NSW
Don't miss out on the headlines from NSW. Followed categories will be added to My News.
With so many internationals having to resit their tests, the Service NSW testing system has become clogged.
Sydney teenagers desperate to get their licence are now having to be driven hundreds of kilometres away by their parents to towns in regional NSW to get a test spot.
The lack of available spots for driving tests have reached Covid-level proportions, due to rule changes in July 2023 that require foreign drivers with international licences to sit driving tests within six months of arriving in the country. From March this year overseas licence holders who arrived in Australia prior to July 2023 have also been given a 12-month deadline to sit the test, which has resulted in tens of thousands of people vying for limited bookings.
The Daily Telegraph can reveal that in the last financial year, one in two foreign drivers failed their tests, with Service NSW scrambling to meet increased demand.
Those who fail their tests are put on a NSW Learners licence, regardless of the status of their international licence and are able to retest after seven days - if they can find a booking.
The vast numbers of international drivers failing their tests has led to reported waits of up to two months at some service centres to book a test. As a result young learners are travelling hours to regional towns to snap up available spots, creating shortages outside of Sydney.
Goulburn driving instructor, Steve Ruddell said young learners in the Southern Tablelands town were having to wait more than five weeks to secure a test due to an influx of people from Sydney. He said many of those travelling to the area are those holding overseas licences.
“It’s really putting a strain on the system,” he said.
“I have been fielding heaps of phone calls from people coming from the metro area looking for a quick driving lesson before the test, to get a bit of an idea of the area and hire a car.”
Mr Ruddell said he believed the language barrier was a major issue facing international arrivals hoping to get their NSW licence.
“There’s about 57 languages for the online tests but that doesn’t translate onto the road with English written signs,” he said.
“I’ve found they can fail to understand how to interpret those signs.”
The rule changes requiring international licence holders to sit a test were designed to close a loophole, first exposed by The Daily Telegraph, which allowed anyone who entered NSW before July 2023 to keep using their foreign credentials to flout road rules, racking up massive numbers of demerit points.
Coogee teen Zoe Vella, 18, waited three months last year before she could get a driving test in her local area.
“I waited to do my test at Eastgardens … if I had wanted to do one sooner I would have had to leave Sydney,” she said.
“Most of my friends have had long waits too, one had to wait for four months.”
A Service NSW spokesperson said a record 396,000 driving tests had been undertaken in the last financial year, including the introduction of Saturday testing across Sydney, the Central Coast and the Illawarra to cope with demand. While the extra testing created an extra 450 testing slots each week across the state, the backlog has still increased with the NSW government extending the Saturday tests into August.
“Service NSW expects the current overseas driver testing backlog to be reaching its peak but continues to monitor and plan for future demand,” the spokesperson said.
Customer Services Minister Jihad Dib said Service NSW was currently attempting to recruit 20 additional driver testers to provide 900 new testing spots across the state each week.
Roads Minister Jenny Aitchison acknowledged the rule changes for international drivers had created a backlog but said the reforms were essential to “reduce demerit point fraud and ensure all drivers are properly recorded in our state’s system”.
“It allows for better regulation of driver behaviour and more targeted enforcement where needed,” she said.
“Whether someone is here for a short visit or a longer stay, they should be held to the same standard.”
More Coverage
Originally published as Sign of the times: Why foreign drivers failing licence tests are putting L-platers in a jam
Join the conversation
Sydney braces for days of rain, cold temps
Sydney is in for a stretch of wet and windy weather, with rain forecast through to Sunday.
Read more
City slickers go bush: Sydneysiders take up tree-change
Thousands of essential workers and their families have ditched the city and moved to the bush to try out a new program lining them up with jobs, schools and mates in a new town.
Read more