‘It’s a nightmare,’ says driver who traveled 1hr to DMV and was told to wait 3 months – she can’t work until appointment | 92I449I | 2024-04-29 12:08:01
'It's a nightmare,' says driver who traveled 1hr to DMV and was told to wait 3 months – she can't work until appointment | 92I449I | 2024-04-29 12:08:01
A NORTH Carolina woman decided to go out of her way to avoid the lines at her local DMV only to end up waiting for two hours.
Her experience was largely due to a change in appointment guidelines.
Jaqueline Camradt drove an hour away from her local Asheville, North Carolina, DMV to avoid the long wait times and loud crowds.
She got a new job that required a CDL license and was hoping to save valuable time going to a further location
"It's a nightmare to deal with," she told NBC affiliate WYFF.
"It's always very, very crowded, and really can't get in. It will take three to four hours, even with a walk-in, so I drove the distance to hopefully get it done quicker."
She tried to make an appointment with the North Carolina DMV but was told the next available appointment wasn't until July – three months away.
So, she decided to sit and wait for an opening.
"The next appointment is not available until July," she said.
"So, I decided to wait because I need my new license to start my new career."
A decision that cost her three hours.
Rhiannon Eskew said she had to burn a vacation day to get her DMV dealings done.
<!-- End of Brightcove Player --> "We had to get vacation time for the day," she said.
"The whole day. Because you don't know, you have to sit here all day and potentially get turned away."
A recent change in how the NCDMV handles appointments and walk-ins was largely to blame for both women's scenarios.
Data showed that a majority of the department's visitors were walk-ins, and a quarter of all appointments were no-shows.
"Folks would rather have walk-in opportunities than appointments," said NCDMV Commissioner Wayne Goodwin.
"And frankly, the data also shows this, 25 percent of our appointments are no-shows."
<!--googleoff: all--> <blockquote class="article__quote"> </blockquote> <!--googleon: all--> Therefore, the department changed the appointment times to until 11 am to facilitate walk-ins for the day.
Eric Ager, a state representative, faced similar waiting times when his teens attempted to get their driver's licenses.
He surmised that the pandemic created a shortage, which then created a surplus of people looking for services.
"Obviously, during COVID I think you had a huge backlog of folks that ended up not going," he said.
The NCDMV limited hours for appointments to prioritize walk-ins after data showed a quarter of appointments were no-shows[/caption]
"And then it's been a challenge ever since. The other challenge has been just being able to hire people."
Goodwin noted that the department has been working hard to reduce wait times, hire more workers, and retain the employees who stayed through the pandemic.
He started by lobbying for DMV kiosks to be erected in grocery stores and military bases, making Saturday hours permanent, and giving raises to employees.
The NCDMV now has many services and renewals that can be largely done online, with finishing paperwork to be signed at a location.
More >> https://ift.tt/Ms8xt95 Source: MAG NEWS
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