About 50.000 candidates who annually book a theory exam at the Central Bureau for Driving Proofs (CBR) fail to do so. That is roughly ten percent of all exam students, says CBR director Alexander Pechtold in an interview with De Telegraaf. “I am surprised and also angry about that. Because even if the waiting times are a lot better than just after the lockdowns, someone else would be happy with that place. This is sin.”

The CBR is still struggling with significant backlogs as a result of the corona lockdowns, Pechtold told the newspaper. “We are back on track, especially in theory overtaking is fast. I hope that our possibilities will not be curtailed again, but by the end of 2022 things should also be back to normal for the practical exams.”

However, the corona pandemic has ensured that it is possible to catch up with the health declarations. “We were dealing with 200.000 health declaration files that had to be reviewed. We didn't have the capacity for that, so people could be temporarily without a driver's license. We have now eliminated that bulk and people often have a new pink card within a few days.”

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