Swap your Reading driving test for an earlier date
220 Elgar Road South, Reading, Berkshire, RG2 0BW
Reading driving test centre is a DVSA practical test centre in the South East, on 220 Elgar Road South.
As of July 2026 the median wait here is 13.9 weeks, 2 weeks longer than the 11.9-week national median — which is why learners often look to swap a driving test in Reading rather than wait it out.
Its closest alternative is Newbury (Hambridge Lane), 14 miles away.
Reading driving test waiting times, August 2025 to July 2026
Median weeks between booking and taking a driving test at Reading. Source: DVSA table DRT122F, published monthly. Latest month: July 2026.
| Month | Median wait | Still bookable |
|---|---|---|
| July 2026 | 13.9 wks | 4.6% |
| June 2026 | 11.6 wks | 4.2% |
| May 2026 | 4.3 wks | 5.4% |
| April 2026 | 5.9 wks | 5% |
| March 2026 | 5 wks | 4.6% |
| February 2026 | 5.1 wks | 4.2% |
| January 2026 | 10.8 wks | 4.6% |
| December 2025 | 8.1 wks | 4.9% |
| November 2025 | 10 wks | 3.4% |
| October 2025 | 22.4 wks | 0.2% |
| September 2025 | 22.5 wks | 2.9% |
| August 2025 | 12.1 wks | 2.7% |
The 3 centres you can move this test to
Since 9 June 2026, DVSA only lets you move a car test to one of your 3 nearest test centres, or the centre you first booked at. If you are booked at Reading, these are those three — measured as straight-line distance from the centre itself.
Reading currently has the shortest wait of the four. If you hold a test here, someone at a slower nearby centre may well want to swap into it.
How to swap a driving test in Reading
Zwitch introduces the two learners and stops there — you complete the swap with DVSA yourselves. Since 12 May 2026 it is against the law for anyone else to change, cancel or swap a test on your behalf. Never give another learner your driving licence number or booking reference.
Getting to the centre
- Address
- 220 Elgar Road South, Reading, Berkshire, RG2 0BW
- Postcode
- RG2 0BW
- Coordinates
- 51.44277, -0.97230
- Region
- South East, England
- Parking
- A car park is available at the test centre
- Accessibility
- Arrangements will be made at this test centre if you have a disability
- Toilets
- Male and female toilets are available
- Centre notes
- Don't enter the test centre car park until 5 minutes before your test time as parking space is limited.
How Reading compares
- 182 of 311 centres on this site, counting up from the shortest wait.
- 3.9 weeks longer than the South East median of 10 weeks, across 30 centres. 21 centres in South East currently wait less.
- DVSA made 4,329 tests available here in July 2026; 4,132 were booked — 197 went unused.
- The wait has moved 19.8% longer across the months on record.
Questions about swapping a Reading test
- How long is the wait for a driving test at Reading?
- The median wait at Reading is 13.9 weeks as of July 2026, from DVSA's own figures, which makes it the 182nd shortest of the 311 centres on this site.
- Can I get an earlier driving test near Reading?
- Not by moving centre — all three centres you may legally move this test to currently wait longer than Reading's 13.9 weeks. Swapping with another learner who already holds an earlier date here is the remaining route.
- Can someone book a Reading driving test cancellation for me?
- No — not at Reading or anywhere else. Since 12 May 2026 it is against the law for a third party to change, cancel or swap a test on your behalf, which is why the 13.9-week wait here cannot be jumped by paying someone to watch for cancellations. Zwitch introduces two learners who each want the other's date; you complete the swap with DVSA yourselves.
- Which centres can I swap a Reading test to?
- DVSA allows a move to the centre you first booked at or one of the three nearest to it — for Reading those are Newbury (Hambridge Lane) (14 miles), Farnborough (14.5 miles), Basingstoke (14.9 miles).
Where these numbers come from
- Waiting times and availability — DVSA table DRT122F: car driving test availability by driving test centre, published monthly on the second Wednesday. Latest month in this dataset: July 2026. "Median wait" is DVSA's own measure of the middle waiting time between booking and taking a test.
- Address, postcode, coordinates and facilities — the DVSA test centre list behind the GOV.UK find a driving test centre service.
- Distances — great-circle distance calculated from the published coordinates. Straight-line, not driving distance.
- Known limitation — the DVSA centre list lags the live GOV.UK finder, so a centre that has recently been renamed or split may appear here in its older form. Closed centres are excluded using DRT122F. Always confirm on GOV.UK before booking.
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Zwitch is not affiliated with or endorsed by DVSA. Page data last updated 2026-08-18.