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The UK’s driving test booking website has crashed following “unprecedented demand” after it opened for the first time since March due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Learner drivers will now have to wait until at least Wednesday to try and book a test while the Driver & Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) carries out “essential work” on the website.
The DVSA said the site had been visited 7m times in just 12 hours after it reopened on Friday morning.
In a tweet on Saturday afternoon, the agency said the service would be closed until 8am on Wednesday.
On social media, learner drivers described spending hours trying to book a test.
Gareth Llewellyn, the chief executive of the DVSA said: “Coronavirus has severely impacted our business as usual operations, including by stopping driving tests in March.”
For the past five months, the DVSA has only been taking applications for emergency driving tests for critical workers, he said.
“Following unprecedented demand for the driving test booking system with almost 7 million attempts to book a test when it opened, we need to carry out urgent maintenance so people can book tests.
“We have to close the booking service until Wednesday 26 August and are sorry for any inconvenience caused.”