Newcastle West results: 67.2% (1,842)
Test centre in County Limerick, with every figure from the CSO tables the Road Safety Authority publishes.- 1,842car tests
- 2 of 57car rank
- 11weeks to invite (August 2026)
How Newcastle West compares
Newcastle West passed 67.2% of 1,842 car tests (1,238 passes) over September 2025 to August 2026, 14.8 points above the national 52.4%. Of the 57 centres that delivered 500 or more car tests, Newcastle West ranks 2nd highest. Above Newcastle West: Newcastle West (Longcourt House Hotel) (3.7 higher). Below Newcastle West: Thurles (1.2 lower) and Loughrea (2.2 lower). Newcastle West's 1,842 car tests: 12th quietest of 57. Newcastle West's closest in size: Monaghan with 157 more tests, 5.2 lower; Carrick On Shannon with 162 more tests, 5.8 lower; Drogheda - Southgate with 102 fewer tests, 13.0 lower and Thurles with 102 fewer tests, 1.2 lower.
Newcastle West across all categories: 68.1% of 1,911 tests (54.8% nationally), 69 in other licence categories. Newcastle West took 15.8% of the 11,645 car tests at 4 County Limerick centres. Newcastle West's 67.2%, county 59.8%: 7.4 points above.
Car driving test pass rate at Newcastle West, month by month
Newcastle West's best month: 77.3% of 120 tests, January 2026. Worst: 36.4% of 23, September 2025, a 40.9 point gap. Newcastle West's quietest month: 23 tests, September 2025; busiest: 290, April 2026. Newcastle West's 23 tests in September 2025 are few enough to swing a long way on a handful of results. Newcastle West, first 6 months: 60.2% of 597; last 6: 70.5% of 1,245, so Newcastle West improved 10.3 points. Latest at Newcastle West, August 2026: 62.5% of 205. A year earlier: 66.7% of 53, so Newcastle West is 4.2 points down.
Show the monthly figures
| Month | Car tests | Pass rate |
|---|---|---|
| September 2024 | 73 | 47.0% |
| October 2024 | 122 | 51.3% |
| December 2024 | 15 | 60.0% |
| January 2025 | 95 | 39.1% |
| February 2025 | 122 | 46.9% |
| March 2025 | 148 | 50.4% |
| April 2025 | 121 | 51.3% |
| May 2025 | 132 | 60.2% |
| June 2025 | 111 | 39.8% |
| July 2025 | 250 | 59.6% |
| August 2025 | 53 | 66.7% |
| September 2025 | 23 | 36.4% |
| October 2025 | 142 | 54.6% |
| November 2025 | 105 | 46.2% |
| December 2025 | 135 | 60.8% |
| January 2026 | 120 | 77.3% |
| February 2026 | 72 | 69.6% |
| March 2026 | 262 | 73.7% |
| April 2026 | 290 | 75.2% |
| May 2026 | 169 | 74.1% |
| June 2026 | 111 | 64.7% |
| July 2026 | 208 | 68.2% |
| August 2026 | 205 | 62.5% |
Newcastle West pass rates by year
Newcastle West, September 2024 to August 2025: 51.9% of 1,242 car tests in the 11 months it tested. Since then Newcastle West climbed 15.3 points on 1,842 car tests against 1,242, up 600 (48.3%). Newcastle West went from 24th lowest of 57 to 2nd highest of 57. Of 55 centres ranked in both periods, Newcastle West's 15.3 point rise ranks 2nd largest. Newcastle West added 600 car tests, the 20th largest of 49 increases. Newcastle West gained 9.2 points on County Limerick, which went from 53.7% to 59.8%.
Newcastle West by calendar year: 65.2% of 1,043 car tests in 2021, 52.6% of 1,437 in 2025, down 12.6 points (national down 1.5). Newcastle West, 2023 to 2025: 52.0% of 1,343 to 52.6%, a gain of 0.6 points for Newcastle West. Best full year: 65.2% in 2021; worst: 52.0% in 2023; busiest: 1,437 car tests in 2025. Newcastle West's car no shows: 11 in 2021, 49 in 2025; not conducted: 45, then 107. Newcastle West, 2026 to date: 71.1% of 1,437 in 8 months, 18.8 points over national at Newcastle West.
| Year | All tests | Pass rate, all tests | Car tests here | Car pass rate here | Car no shows | Car tests not conducted | Car pass rate nationally |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 1,061 | 65.5% | 1,043 | 65.2% | 11 | 45 | 53.3% |
| 2022 | 1,188 | 53.7% | 1,145 | 52.6% | 26 | 66 | 50.2% |
| 2023 | 1,382 | 52.8% | 1,343 | 52.0% | 32 | 40 | 50.6% |
| 2024 (11 months) | 1,308 | 46.7% | 1,249 | 45.1% | 24 | 80 | 49.0% |
| 2025 | 1,502 | 54.1% | 1,437 | 52.6% | 49 | 107 | 51.8% |
| 2026 (8 months) | 1,481 | 71.8% | 1,437 | 71.1% | 36 | 73 | 52.3% |
Newcastle West by licence category
Newcastle West, under 100 tests each: 69 car and trailer (BE). Too few for a steady rate.
| Category | Tests | Pass rate here | Nationally |
|---|---|---|---|
| Category B (Car or light van) | 1,842 | 67.2% | 52.4% |
| Category BE (Car with Trailer) | 69 | 94.9% | 85.4% |
Newcastle West waiting times and capacity
Newcastle West's estimated time to a test invitation at the end of August 2026, against 11.6 weeks nationally: 11 weeks at Newcastle West. Longer waits than Newcastle West: 23 centres. Shorter than Newcastle West: 27, of 57 others with a published wait. Newcastle West: longest wait in County Limerick; Limerick - Castlemungret and Limerick - Woodview the shortest, 1 week less than Newcastle West. Driver testers assigned to Newcastle West in July 2026: 1. In August 2026, 98.6% of the 209 test slots at Newcastle West were filled, against 98.3% across all centres. Newcastle West's 209 test slots: 19th fewest of 59 centres.
- 11 weeksEstimated wait for a test invitation, August 2026
- 1Driver testers assigned
- 209Test slots in the latest month
- 98.6%Slots used
Newcastle West: no shows and tests not conducted
Newcastle West counted 1,991 car tests: 1,842 delivered, 47 no shows and 102 not conducted or abandoned. Newcastle West's shares of those 1,991: 2.4% no shows and 5.1% not conducted at Newcastle West. Of 57 centres, Newcastle West's 2.4% no show share ranks joint 9th lowest. Neither count moves Newcastle West's 67.2% pass rate: 1,238 passes over 1,842 tests delivered. Nationally the two shares were 3.1% and 7.4%.
1,842 car tests is enough for the car figure to be stable from month to month, but it still reflects who sat the test here, how much they had practised and the local roads, not only how strict a tester is.
How to read a centre's figures beside the national picture, and what the test checks, is in the driving test pass rates guide.
Source: Road Safety Authority, published by the Central Statistics Office, PxStat ROA30, CC BY 4.0, checked on 2026-09-16.Newcastle West and County Limerick
Newcastle West trails Newcastle West (Longcourt House Hotel) by 3.7 points (774 tests at 70.9%); Newcastle West leads Limerick - Woodview by 8.8 points (4,595 tests at 58.4%); Newcastle West waits 1 week more than Limerick - Woodview and Newcastle West leads Limerick - Castlemungret by 10.9 points (4,434 tests at 56.3%); Newcastle West waits 1 week more than Limerick - Castlemungret.
Limerick (Roxboro) delivered no car tests over September 2025 to August 2026, so it has no car rate to set against Newcastle West.