Transport Department Confident of Clearing Driver's Licence Backlog by December, SA Has Doubts
- The Department of Transport is confident that it will clear the backlog of driver's licence cards
- Over 500,000 licences are still outstanding, with 10,000 new applicants coming in every day
- South Africans shared their thoughts on the issue, but had little confidence that it would work as planned
PAY ATTENTION: You can now search for all your favourite news and topics on Briefly News.
Source: Getty Images
Briefly News journalist Byron Pillay has dedicated a decade to reporting on the South African political landscape, crime, and social issues. He spent 10 years working for the Northern Natal Courier before transitioning to online journalism.
GAUTENG – The Department of Transport is confident that it will clear the backlog of driving licence cards by December 2025, but South Africans aren’t as confident.
The department currently faces a backlog of over 500,000 driver’s licences as a result of the country’s only printer being out of order. The backlog was worse a few months back, but the department has chipped away at the backlog since the machine was fixed in May 2025.
834,000 cards printed since May
Speaking about the backlog, department spokesperson Collen Msibi detailed the progress made since the machine was fixed in May.
PAY ATTENTION: stay informed and follow us on Google News!
“Since the end of May until the 11th of August, we’ve been able to print up to 834,000 driver’s licence cards. But it leaves us with a 539,000 backlog. And the reason is that while there’s that backlog where the machine was not working, we still receive applications from motorists daily.”
Msibi added that daily, they receive approximately 10,000 applications, which makes it difficult to catch up with the existing backlog.
“We’ve given ourselves until December to be able to complete the backlog,” he explained.
Why is there a backlog?
The problems with the printer are by no means a new thing. The printer has been operational since 1998 and has experienced at least 160 breakdowns since then. The breakdowns have become more frequent with age, and to compound issues, the printer must be shipped overseas whenever it breaks down.
In 2021, Parliament’s Portfolio Committee on Transport urged the then Transport Minister, Fikile Mbabula, to be forthcoming about the real reason the machine was out of service.
In April 2025, South Africans were left frustrated as the machine was out of order for four months. It was only operational in May again.
Source: Getty Images
How did South Africans react?
Social media users had little faith in the department’s optimism, with many stating that they had been waiting for months already.
Daisy Makhongoane asked:
“Is it a glass machine? 🤔Because it keeps breaking now and then, like glass.”
Dre Rene Ngobeni stated:
“Six-month process to renew a licence.”
Mervyn Schofield said:
“My temporary one is expiring next month, and I'm still waiting for my card.”
Gqigqi L'v Vuyo added:
“I’ve been waiting since February, when I went for my PDP. Still nothing, jeez.”
Stephen Atkinson asked:
“This shouldn’t have happened in the first place. Has no one in the Department of Transport got any forward thinking or common sense? Doesn’t look like it.”
Zenande Ntanga Mngcele stated:
“And it will break down again.”
Temba Rugara added:
“December is too far.”
Da Cruz stated:
“Mxm, futsek. I renewed my licence and PDP in January, and now this nonsense government is telling us about December. How are you going to get a job?”
Over 700,000 drivers still waiting for licences
Briefly News reported that South Africans were concerned that the only licence-printing machine was out of order.
The backlog of people waiting for driver's license cards has exceeded 700,000 drivers waiting for their licenses.
The machine returned to service in May, but as it can only print 19,000 cards daily, the backlog has resulted in frustration.
PAY ATTENTION: Follow Briefly News on Twitter and never miss the hottest topics! Find us at @brieflyza!
Source: Briefly News
