AQW 51755/22-27

Ms Paula Bradshaw
Alliance Party
South Belfast

Tabled Date: 11/09/2026
Answered On Date: 08/10/2026
Priority Written: No

Question:
To ask the Minister for Infrastructure to detail any confirmation she can give that drivers, currently displaying R plates, will be treated in the same manner as drivers who have passed their tests from 1 October 2026.

Answer:

Those who have passed their test under the GDL system will have been subjected to a longer and more robust learning period, the 6-month mandatory minimum learning period with the logbook app, and they will have learnt to drive at speeds above 45mph.

Whereas those who have passed their test before the introduction of the GDL system, will not have learnt to drive above 45mph and will not have went through the longer, more robust, learning process. The 45mph limit has been considered appropriate for ‘R’ drivers in these conditions for decades.

The GDL system will introduce a new, separate, ‘R’ plate for those who pass their test under the GDL system and can drive above 45mph, meaning it will be clear to other drivers who is restricted to 45mph and who is not.

Transitional arrangements for learners whose provisional licence entitlement to drive a category B vehicle commenced before 1 October 2026 are set out in the Road Traffic (Amendment) Act 2016. While there will be a period during which newly qualified drivers are subject to different post-test requirements, this is a necessary consequence of the transition from one driver licensing system to another.

The arrangements have been designed to provide a fair and proportionate transition. It allows existing provisional licence holders time, up to the end of the transitional period, to complete their training and take the driving test for which they have been prepared. Significantly, this does not include driving at speeds above 45mph. As they will have learnt to drive under the existing regulatory framework, it is appropriate that they will continue to be subject to the current restrictions on new drivers, including the display of the existing amber R plate and compliance with a 45mph speed limit for one year after passing their driving test. GDL passenger restrictions will not therefore apply to such new drivers.

The transitional period also provides for existing drivers who passed the practical driving test before 1 October 2026. They will continue to be required to display the current ‘amber’ R plate for one year and remain subject to the current 45mph speed restriction during that period.

The first opportunity, unless exempted from the Mandatory Minimum Learning Period, to take a practical test that will assess the driver training required under GDL, will be after the end of the transitional period, that is, 1 April 2027. Candidates that pass this test will have been trained and tested at speeds greater than 45mph and will be subject to GDL’s post-test arrangements.

I consider that this approach represents the most practical and equitable means of implementing GDL while ensuring continuity and certainty for learners who have already commenced training.