DMV targets hiring, technology to shorten wait for driver's licenses

A driver's license is the ticket to freedom for teens and busy parents alike. Yet, the wait to get one in North Carolina continues to drag on. 5 On Your Side looked at available appointments and found fewer than a dozen offices in the state have open appointments in February. That’s similar to when we last checked in November.

Raleigh parent Cassandra Duarte reached out to WRAL News after struggling to find her daughter an appointment to obtain a learner's permit.

“Everything is behind schedule,” Duarte said.

Duarte took the advice of her daughter’s driving instructor who told her the best time to find an available appointment on the DMV’s website was by checking between 1:00 a.m. and 2:00 a.m. She found one a few weeks out.

But she did not want to wait, so she and her daughter decided to try their luck without an appointment.

They first went to the Avent Ferry Road DMV location in Raleigh, then to Spring Forest Road, and finally back to Avent Ferry. They were in the line by 6 a.m. but waited most of the day.

“It was 2:45 p.m. by the time she took her test, got her permit, and we were out the door. So, it took a little over eight hours,” Duarte said.

State Sen. Vickie Sawyer had a similar experience when she tried to get her daughter a driver’s license.

“We had to drive over 50 miles away from my home and waited two months for an appointment,” she said.

Sawyer is a parent who is in a unique situation to have a say in how the DMV tackles excessive wait times. She is a co-chair of the Senate Transportation Committee. To her the answer is simple, she wants to utilize technology more.

“We’ve invested tons of money to update their systems, and it’s just not getting done,” she said.

For example, California offers self-serve kiosks at 365 libraries and stores. Arizona and Maryland allow citizens to store an ID on a mobile phone.

Wayne Godwin was appointed to DMV commissioner last year. Since he took over, the DMV rolled out more online services and Q-Anywhere which allows customers to digitally save their spot in line without having to be present.

When asked what other tech upgrades he’d like for the DMV, Goodwin told 5 On Your Side he would want to expand access and implement devices that would help ease long lines.

“I’d like to have kiosks in every county, particularly in grocery stores, places where customers can go 24/7,” he said. “I’d like to have the most up-to-date, portable units so that we can have pop-up shops and provide driver license services at community events, like the NC State Fair.”

However, Goodwin admits change is slow. Take for example, a pandemic-era statute which allowed students to have a learner's permit for six months, rather than the traditional 12 months, before being able to get a provisional license.

“The legislature put an expiration on that law of Dec. 31, 2022. The way it was written, unfortunately, was that we couldn’t grandfather those teens who were already in the process,” Goodwin said.

Goodwin’s been trying to change that ever since and hopes to grandfather in the affected students.

“I’m feeling very confident that the legislature will address this," he said. "They’ve heard from parents. They’ve heard from teen drivers."

His biggest focus is labor. Despite increasing wages and offering $1,500 signing bonuses, about 33% of DMV jobs remain unfilled.

“I think we will have more data to support what I believe will be a positive impact, this time next year,” Goodwin said.

He believes more workers are the key, at least in the short term, to shorter lines and wait times.