DMV extending hours at select locations to combat long lines
Beginning Monday, DMV officials hope to offer some relief from the longs lines that have been a source of frustration for many in North Carolina.
After some residents reported waiting outside DMV offices for hours in long lines, DMV officials announced that 11 locations around the state will open at 7 a.m., an hour earlier than normal, beginning Monday.
Officials said the long lines are partially due to people seeking Real IDs, which will be a requirement to fly starting in October 2020.
“I’m really happy about it,” a student, who asked only to be identified as Sujal, said.
Sujal and Matreya Save are North Carolina State University graduate students from India who plan to come to the DMV soon to get North Carolina driver’s licenses for the first time.
“We can get it done with, go to our classes and be happy,” Save said.
Previously, they said they had avoided the DMV because of long lines their friends experienced.
“There was no specified time. Like, how much time would it take? Some of my friends got it done in three hours, some of them extended up to five hours. I wasn’t sure,” Sujal said.
The graduate students are optimistic the extended DMV hours will have a significant impact, but not everybody agrees.
Jingky, a Raleigh resident, said he has been to the DMV many times before, often waiting in line for two or three hours. He is not confident the extra hour each day will be enough.
“Probably, it will still be the same, the duration of the waiting time,” he said.
The extended hours are one of a few things DMV officials have been doing in an attempt to reduce lines. Officials have also added extra staff at busy officers and created express lines for customers with quick transactions.
The following 11 DMV locations will be open from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday beginning Oct. 8:
- 3231 Avent Ferry Road in Raleigh
- 104 N.C. Highway 54, suite GG in Carrboro
- 1387 Southeast Maynard Road in Cary
- 2439 Gillespie Street in Fayetteville
- 701 West Grantham Street in Goldsboro
- 2527 East Market Street in Greensboro
- 2214 West Vernon Avenue in Kinston
- 1164 U.S. Highway 17 South in Elizabeth City
- 3637 North Patterson Avenue in Winston-Salem
- One Station Road in Wilmington
For the full list: DMV offices with extended hours
