the DMV non-Blues

[lagilman]

Many years ago, the NJ DMV was, shall we say, a national horror story, even among DMV horror stories. So they privatized it, to much at-the-time skepticism.

As part of that privatization, anyone of a certain (legal drinking) age got to renew via mail, to keep the lines down, etc. Which meant that you got to go a number of years without a photo i.d. This was fun, except when people demanded to see photo i.d. and refused to believe that, yes, NJ did allow this. Sometimes even in NJ they refusd to believe this.

I no longer have to worry about it. My license was up for renewal, and the renew-by-mail grace period is no more.

So, with great trepidation I hied myself down to the nearest location to stand in line and get my photo taken.

Less than thirty minutes later I was done. As in, paperwork processed, done with everything, license in hand, we'll see you in four years next please! And the photo (digitalized) is... pretty good, actually. *looks again* Yeah. Good photo.

Amazing. Props to the NJ DMV.


Of course, now I have no excuse not to get to the stuff I was going to spend all morning procrastinating about because I was standing on line...

Comments

[karentoe.livejournal.com]

It's never been a long wait at the DMV here, but our state only requires a new photo over 8 years - a change made 8 years ago. They did this to save money. I was only hastled once about the old picture - at Logan Airport in Boston.

[dianora2.livejournal.com]

I've been waffling over whether to go get mine renewed tomorrow. You have inspired me! (Thank god for the Express DMV on 34th Street, is all I can say.)

[quarkwiz.livejournal.com]

I got mine renewed in December at 34th St. Total time from the instant I walked out of my office at 55th till the time I was back and in my chair: 45 minutes. If you're going to go there, go on a Tuesday or Wednesday around 2:30; the lady who took my photo said that's when they're slowest. Or were in December, anyway. I love the picture--good thing, since I get to keep it till 2012.

[dianora2.livejournal.com]

Sounds about right. I hope it's not going to be worse this time because I have an address change.

[redstarrobot.livejournal.com]

I got my (NJ) license replaced recently, because I had a renewal-by-mail, and needed the photo ID. The one downside (aside from their incredible paperwork requirements these days) is that when I got my number at 8am, I was told the computer system was down state-wide and no one knew when it would be back up, as it often went down for hours or indeed all day. Which was not so good for the waiting experience. (Fortunately, it did come back up in about half an hour, and after that, they were indeed rather snappy with the license-making.)

[paleologa.livejournal.com]

I got mine renewed back in May, and it took 3 hours to get through the process. In their defense, the NJ DMV had just started distributing digital licenses a month or so previously, so they were running at somewhat less than the minimum efficiency levels I'd come to know and fear. For the record, I was at the Route 46 location by Fountains of Wayne.

Glad your experience was better!

[kefiraahava.livejournal.com]

Wow. My sister was trying to get her new-driver NJ license last weekend. (In Newark, I think. Or Harrison. Dunno where.) But they only issued 100 tickets to the 200 people who had been waiting since 9:00 AM that morning, and said "Well, we don't HAVE to see you if you have a RED ticket...we don't care if you stood in line, we don't HAVE to see you."

She had words with the manager there to the effect of "I am sure I'm not the only person who has to work today, I've been waiting for two hours and the line hasn't moved once, no one has explained the color-coding of tickets to ANYONE in this waiting room even though we've been ASKING, you haven't even served one tenth of the people you've given tickets to for no obviously discernable reason, and why don't you have anyone on the floor doing triage for people who didn't bring the correct documents the way you did the last time I was here?"

His response was "It's not my problem if you have to work on a Saturday, lady. Why don't you get another job?" (Mind you, she's out of a job in another month because it's a temp contract. Grrrrrr.) She began writing his name down very carefully. He Didn't Like That.

Glad YOU had a good experience!*wry grin*

[lagilman]

Tickets? Huh? I went to the office in East Orange, which opened at 8am. Got there around 8:20. Was home by 9. No tickets. Only three people waiting ahead of me.

Very strange. Glad I didn't go to the Newark office.