Barcelona and Catalonia rack up 85,000 candidates without a test owing to the shortage of driving examiners

The shortage of driving examiners has left more than 85,000 people in Catalonia waiting to get their licence. Barcelona accounts for the majority of those affected. Driving schools are denouncing an unsustainable situation and demanding urgent solutions.

The lives of thousands of people in Barcelona and the rest of Catalonia are on hold due to a problem that keeps growing: the lack of driving examiners has meant that more than 85,000 candidates are still waiting to take their driving test. In the Catalan capital alone, the number exceeds 63,000, making it harder to obtain a licence and delaying personal and professional plans.

The Federación d’Autoescoles de Catalunya has raised its voice and is demanding immediate answers from the Dirección General de Tráfico. The organisation’s president, Raül Viladrich, has described the situation as a real collapse and points out that the problem has persisted since 2013. The staff shortage affects not only practical tests but also administrative management, which slows down the process even further.

In the last five years, the situation has worsened to the point that 11% of Catalan driving schools have had to close. The sector insists this is not a request for improvements, but a demand for urgent solutions to what they see as a structural, not a temporary, crisis.

Last year, the DGT promised to increase the number of examiners, but Catalonia received only 15 of the 44 new positions announced, just 34% of what was promised. In addition, many of the examiners assigned to the region leave as soon as they can transfer to other areas, which worsens the shortage and keeps waiting lists long.

Currently, there are almost 5,000 more people on the waiting list than five years ago. The Federación d’Autoescoles de Catalunya warns that the situation is critical and that the promised solutions have not materialised, while demand continues to grow and the problem gets worse.

The Dirección General de Tráfico is the body responsible for managing and supervising driving tests throughout Spain. Its role is key to ensuring mobility and road safety, especially in large cities like Barcelona, where demand for new drivers is constant. The lack of human resources at the DGT not only affects those waiting for their licence, but also impacts the economic activity of driving schools and the daily lives of thousands of families.