MALAGA is one of the worst places for learner drivers in Spain, as one instructor called the city “the most concerning city in Andalusia and almost in Spain.”
Malaga province is missing 12 of the 34 driving examiners it needs, leaving some 18,000 learner drivers on waiting lists and facing delays of up to eight months to sit their test, according to Antonio MartÃn, president of the Association of Driving Schools of Malaga.
Speaking to the Olive Press, MartÃn said the shortfall means would-be drivers now typically wait between four and eight months for an exam slot, all while remaining legally obliged to keep paying for lessons in order to stay eligible for a test date.
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“The DGT [Spain’s traffic authority] is disregarding Malaga,” MartÃn said. “This year’s figures surpass those of 2025 by 6,000 learners. Many students need these tests for applying for jobs or improving those they already have.”
The problem is compounded by patchy public transport across the region. Marbella, a city of more than 150,000 residents, still has no train station of its own, leaving many young people and expats reliant on passing their test simply to get around.
August is traditionally one of the busiest months for learners, with large numbers sitting their tests over the summer holidays. Yet examiners are currently working at close to a third of normal capacity, according to MartÃn.
“Malaga is the sixth largest city in Spain by population, and yet ranks 48th nationally for its ratio of examiners to learners,” he said.
“Say a driving school like ours has the capacity to teach 50 people. Right now, there are schools examining only four people a month. We cannot accept 50 students if we cannot guarantee them an exam within five months.”
MartÃn added that learners and their families are growing frustrated, and are also being fed what he described as biased and misleading information circulated on social media by the DGT itself. He was careful to stress that the blame lies not with driving schools but with a national administration he says has failed to address the sector’s needs.
Much of his criticism is aimed at the DGT’s so-called PRO Plan, which he branded a “poisoned apple.”
The scheme allows students to be examined on Saturdays, but only in the city of Malaga and only for standard category B car licences, excluding motorbike and lorry categories.
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“We are warned only ten days ahead,” MartÃn said. “Under normal circumstances, a new learner starting from scratch cannot reach the standard needed to pass a driving test with only ten days of practice.”
“Therefore, we can only send repeat candidates to the exam, those who already had a previous attempt. The data makes it seem like more people are passing the exam than actually are.”
MartÃn is now calling for the resignation of Pere Navarro, director of the DGT, and believes part of the solution may lie in privatising elements of the driving test sector, drawing a comparison with how private provision operates alongside Spain’s public healthcare system.
Whatever the future holds for Navarro, learner drivers across the Costa del Sol, and the rest of Spain, will be hoping for a resolution soon.
Click here to read more Malaga News from The Olive Press.
