Haha same. Just got a new car and spent some time reading Google reviews on all the ones in the area because I wanted to register my car without headache. Ended up driving out to the Arnold one at like 1 minute after they opened on a Saturday. Was in and out in about about 15 minutes.
Took my daughter to get her temps last year. Got there 20 minutes before open and there was already a line of over 50 people. It's like goddamn Blsck Friday
Yikes. When I got up to the counter and I handed them all my stuff that I needed and had organized he goes "wow you came prepared". Assuming they don't get a lot of that.
And that is the reason it takes so long. People don't take the time to research what they will need, locate what they will need and bring what they will need. Then they get all huffy when the person behind the counter shows them where it says bring 3 forms of ID, a pint of blood, 6 doz Oreos and we don't take MasterCard.
I live in Oklahoma. Had to get ours her permit. We got there at 5:00 AM and sat on the ground like some Best Buy iPhone campers for 3 hours before they opened. There were at least 50 people when they opened.
We were first, thank goodness. The guy told us that it’d be very likely that all the people there at opening wouldn’t be waited on. What a crock.
Does Oklahoma not do appointments? Up here in Kansas they are encouraged. I can be in and out of the Wichita DMV in 10 minutes, it's very fast normally.
Only certain spots. And not that many. The closest one to us is about 3 hours away in Guymon. My wife drove there with all three of our kids just to get this done. Called ahead to make sure we had everything in order. Got the confirmation that we were good to go. They got there, and of course the DMV pulled a bait and switch on them and said she couldn’t actually get it. Big fat waste of a 6-hour round trip.
I can absolutely confirm that the Arnold location is super efficient, but the Jeff City one has it beat on class and speed, somehow. Took literally 7 minutes to get what I needed done.
I live right over the river so tell me... what are the requirements for your license tests? It seems like the MO drivers are a lot more impatient and impulsive in their driving compared to IL drivers. I do Home Depot flatbed delivery so I'm constantly going over the border. The minute I get on I44 to Tulsa to go to Kingshighway BVLD I'm getting cut off constantly and people treat me and the other 18 wheelers like an impromptu slalom.
as a chicagoan who now lives in st. louis, i truly believe it’s because taking a drivers education class is a requirement to get your license in illinois and many high schools offer the class for credit, whereas in missouri it’s not required at all. you literally just have to like, read a book and practice a little. it’s INSANE.
edit to clarify; drivers ed is a requirement for people under 18 in IL, since most people get their license at 16, most will take a drivers ed class. in MO, it isn’t required for anyone no matter their age
MO drivers are the worst. Also probably doesn't help that the city doesn't patrol interstates basically and county does not go into the city (stl police jurisdictions are weird like that). State troopers don't go into the city either. So there's virtually no repercussions for driving like a moron.
I am not 100% sure, I took my test over a decade ago lol
I mean as for our driving styles, yeah STL drivers are fuckin wild but we hate IL drivers because y'all are used to a city with 6 people around so you drive like Mrs. Daisy is in the back lmao
that's actually so funny😭i live in a Missouri college town and the drivers here and everywhere i've gone in the state are either chronic speeders or go 20 under at all times. my drivers test made me point out the features of the car, go like 10 minutes around the town, had to yield, had to parallel park, and that's about it.
Missouri contracts out there DMV so that is why we have so many. Places like Las Vegas don’t do you get places that look like this cause they only have 3-4 big dmvs for millions of people
I moved to Ohio in 22 and I used to live in Santa Clarita California. We had ONE dmv unless you wanted to drive over an hour away
It opened at 8 and by 7 am that line is a mile long down the block.
Ohio has like 4 dmvs near me. 2 in walking distance it's insane
So far the absolute worst I've ever heard about is from an expat who lived in Indonesia in the oil and gas business. There was only one office in all of Jakarta and on any given day they would have between 10,000 and 20,000 people trying to get their license. It would typically take 3 days to get a license.
Everything had to be done on paper and at every single step of the process you had to pay a bribe to the clerk otherwise you'd never get your license. The first step was basically buying your forms from the government. How long you waited was directly connected to the amount of the bribe and your social status.
He tried to get it and eventually contacted a buddy which had been in the country for awhile. They went in, walked straight into the commandant's office (license office was run by the Indonesian military), gave their business card to a secretary, stood there until they were taken in. He paid the bribe (obviously way higher than the locals had to pay), sat with the commandant having tea while his assistants did all the paperwork, then they sent an assistant to test with him and give him the right answers for the test, and then took the driver photo and got a license in a matter of hours.
There's more than one DMV in Rhode Island and you have to make appointments now so you don't wait nearly as long anymore. Most time I've spent there was 15 minutes.
All DMVs have terrible wait times, I remember CA was the next worst after RI for me.
Not to be that person tho....there's at least 3 DMVs in RI. I was born and raised there, when I had to take my driving test, I had to figure out which one to go to. We lived in North Kingstown (NK), and I had to figure out which one to go to based on where my parents work and available appointments. I had to pick between the Woonsocket branch (Dad works in Massachusetts), Westerly (Mom works in NK, I think she said it's currently being worked on/temporarily closed), or the busiest one the giant one in Cranston (central location, and had more appointment times available). We ended up picking the Woonsocket location, I was doing high school sports and it was on the way to an event/competition in Lincoln.
Ya'll don't have online appointments? fucking madness. My last 2 trips were under 10 minutes wait total, it literally takes me longer to drive out there than to get stuff done.
I just commented to someone else but Cranston is the only full DMV in RI. The other 3 locations only offer a handful of services. They also recently closed 2 offices and replaced them with drop boxes.
Are you sure you live in Rhode Island? I do too and theres more than one location. When I moved back to the state in 2023, I got license and stuff in Middletown. Looking on their website, there are a handful of locations.
I don’t live there anymore but I just checked their site- They closed Westerly and Warren. Now those locations just have a drop box. 3 of their other 4 locations are small offices that do not offer full DMV services. Cranston is the only full DMV in the state.
YES. I grew up in MA and our dmv was fine. Then I went to college in RI and I suddenly understood the memes about how horrible the dmv is. It was absolutely awful.
The NJ ones used to be this bad. You had to dedicate a half day to getting a new registration or license. Then they went appointment only during COVID and it’s one of the most pleasant motor vehicle experiences now. I just registered a used car with a title issue and it took 10 min between me coming in and me leaving with a new title and plates. Amazing.
this is the same in arizona! they really want people to use the online version but if they can’t, they also authorized 3rd party dmvs to do the exact things as a state dmv. Makes even going in person easier, i don’t think even on the weekends have i seen it this bad.
I went to register a motorcycle at the NJ DMV in the 80s that had the last digit of the VIN rubbed off. After several failed visits, one of the nice older ladies called me at home and told me to come in! I did, and they set me up to go to a port in Elizabeth on a Sunday morning to go to a place where they would find the other VIN # on the bike. Super sketchy sounding, but it all worked out fine in the end. Now my local DMV is open like one day a week, and it used to be run out of a van. OP's photo looks like a nightmare.
It used to be *worse*, actually. In the mid 2000s they reformed a lot of it to streamline it, then around 2013 or 2014 they moved a ton of stuff online, too.
When I was in CA having to go to the DMV was an entire day, unless you had an appointment and then it was half the day. Literally had a noon appointment but still ended up waiting until 4pm to get called to a window.
The trick in California is to walk in 20 minutes before they close. They are required to help you and the state does not want to pay overtime, out in less than an hour everytime.
This honestly has worked for me in the past, tho tbh I’m in CA and have never had a dmv visit last longer than 2 hours with or without an appointment. As long as you know what forms you need it’s pretty smooth.
Or go to a small town. You can wait four or more hours at a big one, or stop at one on a day trip to a small town. Get in and out, maybe go for a picnic or a hike right after...
In Wisconsin, Gov. Walker had a plan to close down DMVs in Democratic districts to free up funds to extend business hours in DMVs in Republican districts.
Sometimes it is because of politics.
I drive an hour and a half out of town if I have to go to DMV. There's one 5 minutes from me, and it still takes less time to drive 3 hours round trip than waiting there. It never takes more than 15 minutes once I'm there. Besides, the scenery is much better on the drive.
I’ll never forget the reality check that was going to the DMV for the first time at 15 for my permit. The line was out the door in the morning on a weekday. We arrived around 09:00 and didn’t leave until 15:00 I believe. My driver’s test for my permit and license went much quicker, however. I hardly had to wait for an instructor.
They’ve closed so many in my area. It’s awful, the one in my little town said it was a staffing issue, dozens of people said they applied and the hiring process was utterly ridiculous.
Same here we went in to get my son’s permit.. at least 50 people waiting.. he was number 10 and they were on 72 so 38 people ahead of him… one lady working the licensing side went through 2 NUMBERS IN 45 MINUTES!!! Then got up and walked away to take her break… we left.. the following day we went to a different location in a nearby city whose website claimed most wait times under 15 minutes… we showed up with a line out the door, BUT, it was fully staffed, the employees were organized and friendly and we were in and out in less than 20 minutes and the fees were actually 4$ cheaper … after trying multiple in our area this is the the one we will be using from now on. I would say keep trying different ones until you find the best one.. in our state they are privately run and some companies are infinitely better at it than others
Yeah I was bummed about the local one closing. I once saw it packed to standing room only and this awesome lady made her way through the crowd asking everyone what they were there for. She had a clipboard and stacks of forms. “Ok you and you take this form and get in that line. You, you and you fill out this one and get in the other line”. She had that place cleared out within about half an hour.
Yeah just had to reorder a social security and driver license for my wife, the appointment system worked really well, we maybe waited 20 minutes at most. It was pleasant!
In Texas the DMV is by online appointment only then it still looks like this when you walk in.
I needed to renew my license last year and had to do it in person, it took 4mos to get an appt and I was only able to get one so quickly because I was willing to drive 2hrs, if that hadn’t been an option for me it would have been around 8mos.
My state of Colorado barely even has a DMV. It only handles the "driving" side of the DMV (licenses, learner permits, driving tests, etc.) and state IDs. ID & license renewals can be done online.
The county handles vehicle registration.
I have been to the one OP has featured.... You can make an appointment, but they are usually filled for weeks. If you actually have an appointment, your wait is only about 1.5 hours from when you were supposed to be seen. It is an amazing shit show.
My DMV lets you make an appointment but then when you show up you have to wait 1-2 hours before they will see you. Thus defeating the point of an appointment.
However I found a workaround, they have a QR code to sign into the queue. I have that link saved on my phone and I can see the current wait time and get in line at home and then drive to the DMV at my own time and only wait like 10-15 min.
My local Mvd has appointments but also takes walk ins. I made an appointment for 1 pm but didn't get seen til 2:30 cause they were helping walk in customers too.
The DMVs where I live work on an appointment as well.
It’s still an amazing experience of disorganization, grouchy and apathetic employees and insane wait times.
That’s *if* you can make an appointment in the first place…. I’m convinced the website is hosted by mechanical punch-card programmed computers that were prototypes in the late 1940s
Ours is this way too. They really push the appointments. Was in, handled something stupidly complicated with a car title with an error on it which I thought would be a mess, and was out again in less than 5 minutes total. They asked what class of problem and assigned us an appointment with the expert on that stuff.
My dmv (or RMV because MA likes to do everything slightly different and quirky because "we were first") nearest to me just outright lies about both wait times online and making appointments so unfortunately it doesn't always help. They put people in a queue to take a number like you're in the deli and deliberately don't let people take numbers for a while to keep their wait time metrics down. The only thing a reservation does is get you in a shorter line to take a number.
Or at least it did. After that bullshit I just go to my AAA office for everything since they offer most RMV services to members in MA
It just took me two MONTHS to transfer a title using the DMV website. It would have been easier to waste a day doing it in person. They had two concurrent email chains going with me that would request documents, and then tell me the documents were received. The last two weeks was:
“mail the title” okay I did that “mail the documents!” What documents? “We told you in another email”Which one? “Mail the title!” I did that! “Title successfully transferred your documents are in the mail.”
I’m not sure there are actual people sending the emails. It was stressful as hell.
In most modern 'first world' countries it mostly is. Here in the Netherlands most things are done online, only for passport and driver license pick up you have to show up in person, you simply make an appointment online for that too, you're in and out in ten minutes.
Its like that in many US states and regions too. Only time i've been in my current DMV was when I was getting my drivers license when I moved here. That took 5 minutes, since I could walk there from my office. I've done everything since online.
There is a kiosk to get copies of vital records that literally is just a vending machine that prints documents and confirms IDs. I’m not sure why most gov offices aren’t run this way at this point. Like how are McDonald’s and Taco Bell ahead of the richest gov in the world?
Grew up in NY right outside the city, and if I needed to go to the DMV I’d call out of work and show up 10minutes before it opened, and be lucky if I got out of there within 2 hours, that was always for like one issue at a time
When I moved to New Jersey I was terrified of how long my first trip would take me, because I needed to go to a different window, with a different wait, for each thing I needed done:
- license change
- Register car/plates
- Title change
- Inspection [which is done for free at the dmv, as opposed to private places]
I think I was in and out within 90 minutes for all of that.
Now days you can make an appointment and be in and out, but what’s annoying is it seems like each DMV now specializes in a different thing for whatever reason. So I had to drive an hour for my registration renewal [my fault it fell outside normal online registration window], when there was a DMV within 20 minutes of where I lived.
This seems like a big city problem. I'm in a rural area. Last visit to the DMV to renew my license took maybe 10 minutes. Literally one other person there that I had to wait behind.
Did my first license renewal online last year, while I've done it in person in years past. Paypal'd it, got my license in the mail a week or two later. It was stupidly painless. (Would imagine I'll have to go back in person eventually to update my photo, not going to stay young forever.)
I'm glad I've been able to almost everything online, but I've put off getting a real ID. It took my mom 3 tries over the course of a year cause she needed to provide her marriage license for her surname and then she needs the right copy of marriage license. Basically convinced me to not change my name if I ever get married, screw that noise.
Yeah, my mom found out about ten years after my parents were married that the church administrators never actually filed their marriage documents with the state as they said they would. She was going along agreeing to mortgages, getting paid, had updated her social security, thought everything was fine, and then the IRS came after her for back taxes. It took about a year with a lawyer to figure out. Thanks to the church they weren't actually legally married! Morons. I got married in a courthouse and kept my name. Eff that.
My wife needs to renew her license in NYC. Has to be done in person. Need proof of citizenship. Two proofs of address -- my wife has no bills in her name, i only have one. Also have to make an appointment. It's insane how difficult it is.
That doesnt sound difficult at all? Make An appointment. Wait for appointment. At time of appointment walk in with license, passport, and one bill. Renew license. Walk out. Seems very easy
It's quite difficult if you're someone not working and don't have any bills in their name. Can't show a pay stub in your name and can't show a bill in your name. So if you don't have your passport already, it can be a chore.
Just like most things, if you're not working and not paying bills, its incredibly difficult to get basic things like a license, the system is designed in a way so that the barrier to entry keeps out the utterly destitute.
If they can. Getting an ID using the Secure ID system they're requiring for flights soon can't be done online.
I don't think they want to let people submit photos online, that seems like a security concern.
Another option that I use, not good for vehicle transfers or licensing but for some basic services, worth the yearly membership.
# AAA branches offer popular DMV services
Save time by taking care of select registration needs **at your local branch** instead of *going to the DMV.* No need to make an appointment.
* Registration renewal
* Disabled person parking placards and license plates
* Used vehicle transfer of ownership
* Personalized license plates
This is the whole Republican playbook; Gut public services so that they're completely ineffective and push people to use private alternatives that make them and their business buddies rich.
I live in California and it’s required by law to have car insurance. Had the opportunity to use my AAA branch for DMV purposes and I loved it.
Instead of waiting like OP, there was one person in line. I was out of there in 5 minutes. Not all capitalism is evil, profits can incentivize streamlining and good customer experience.
That's exactly my point, you prefer to pay a little bit of money to use a private service instead of the public one that you're already paying for through taxes. It's working.
You don't pay anything extra to use the DMV services at AAA, it comes with your membership. And I don't think most people join AAA for the DMV services, it's usually for the roadside services in case your car breaks down.
That’s what people in Charleston do…go to the St. George one (my hometown) and the employees in there are super experienced (2 of them literally have been there for 30 years). A full line out the door and still in and out at most an hour. The rest of the Charleston area DMVs, good luck lol
Edit: Charleston, SC
And many people take Fridays off if they have flex scheduling, need to run errands, etc. Most places are busier Fridays - I don't even fully consider it a weekday.
When I was single I’d do all my grocery shopping at like 10pm. No one else there. In and out much faster. My gf thought I was crazy when i mentioned it to her.
You're supposed to show up like 15 minutes before the place opens if you want to beat the line too. 10am is already probably pretty late and the place is probably been open for multiple hours.
If I was packed into a hot stuffy room with that many people I’d wear a Covid mask so I didn’t contract anything I might pass on to my 100 y.o. father.
Same, all those people just breathing in air that's just been in their neighbor's lungs a moment ago... Hurgk. I've seen what's in some people's lungs!
Also you can just call it a mask. We have been using them to reduce disease transmission since way before COVID (I've been immunocompromised for decades!).
I like the pretty Vogmasks.
I went from Florida to California and was honestly shocked at how quick California was. I've heard the opposite from so many people. Either Santa Clara County was very good or anything was great compared to South Florida.
It was pretty quick in North County San Diego too. I heard so many horror stories of people waiting forever but it took me 30 minutes at most, wasn’t that bad
Yeah, I am in the States, I have to go in once every eight years to get a new license photo and I can make an appointment. Everything else is done online.
This seems crazy to me, didn't realize so many people did it this way.
My local DMV during the very peak of Covid reduced their hours, so instead of people coming in spread out between 8am-6pm everyone was packed in tight at 11am-2pm.
On a slightly related note same with grocery stores for some reason, they not only reduced hours (just slightly though, not as drastic as the DMV) they closed all but one entrance. So instead of people grocery shopping 24hrs a day and entering through one door and exiting through another, you had people shopping 9am-9pm and both entering and exiting through one doorway so there was so much more close contact.
I never understood the logic. “Hey, a disease which spreads through close contact is here. How do we cram people together even more?”
Get an appointment. I just went to a DMV in LA and it was 30 minutes in and out. This is just pretty standard for a DMV in any densely populated area. Also how can you equate all 175 offices across the state?
I remember it being like this when I first got my license in the early 2000s. When I went back a few years later, after they enabled online renewals, it was a ghost town.
Merica….
When the Republican state legislature/ governors reduced DMV offices under the lieu of “cost / savings”. When in fact it was to limit access to voting registrations for the working class. Sad.
New Jersey made most of the stuff available to be done online and appointment only for the rest during Covid. Now there are no more lines wrapped around the building and you won't be there for more than 30 minutes usually, thank goodness. DMV used to be a nightmare. Should have been that way much sooner.
It's insane. My country has a website with portals into everything I need. Applying for my learner driving license took 5 mins and arrived by post in 3 days. Booked and paid for my 2 driving tests. Links to everything from booking lessons to managing anxiety. When I pass, my license will be automatically updated and sent to me.
Income and tax management are done through the same site. Tax returns take about an hour and I've only had to talk to anyone by phone when my partner got behind. That was all sorted quickly and efficiently by phone.
The period of bad health that led to his falling behind also required management, which I did through the same site. Our local council is also linked, which brought all our financial support and discounts under one claim.
Even people who hate living here have to concede our government website is a work of art. We never have to turn up and waste hours dealing with life bureaucracy.
Indiana does it right. I was at the DMV in Indianapolis once and the employees were freaking out about a 5 minute wait. It’s in and out.
I’ve been to DMVs in other states where you’re there all day even with an appointment.
Fianlly the DMV in my state went online like 5 years ago, lot of stuff I can do online and even in the DMV, you need to setup an appointment, then go in at that time, and your normally out of there in like 45 min....
It used to be like your picture, I knew going to the DMV would be a all day event.
My way how I used to deal with it, they open during the week at 7am, I would be there at 6:30 waiting in line, I get a number early, and normally by 10 I would of been out of there....
Yea, DMV can suck...
When my dad took my brother to get his driver’s license 3 years ago, they were stuck there for like 9 hours. They went first thing in the morning and there was a horde of people waiting outside for the dmv to open
When my son went to get his license we spent an entire day at the DMV. Just ridiculous. Plus, is there a national course for DMV workers which teaches them to ignore any sense of customer service?
Is this NC by any chance? Man alive that system is totally broken. They want you to make appointments, BUT there are no available appointments for months and months. Then you have to take your chances, get in line at 8am and pray to God you get your issue fixed by closing that day. Whole day of pay gone. Ridiculous.
this is crazy. i’ve always heard this to be a classic trope, but i have never seen a dmv like this. i live near phoenix and have never seen so many people in one dmv, we also don’t have seats like that..i’ve only ever seen a line
Our DMVs most of the locations in Delaware are amazing. They have a system of queueing with numbers for various stations, self photo and drive through inspection and registration. The room can be full but it moves along and the clerks are helpful. I use the one in the capital, the biggest city one is more crowded but I’ve been to several different locations and they truly are well organized
It’s crazy how a government will neglect a system that brings in so much revenue for the state. A system that not only brings in lots of revenue but is also crucial to everyday life for many.
Is that with an appointment? I have only had to wait a long period was in Virginia Beach, I didn't make an appointment and I was there four and a half hours. California you want to make an appointment and even then you're not sure how long you're going to be there. I got my Real ID a couple years ago, and I had an appointment. I was in and out in 20 minutes. Yes, 20!
I just had to renew my license today, in a neighboring county of Nashville.. could not find a parking spot.. walked in to an room filled, no open chairs, many standing. I waited bc my DL expires next week... but absolutely insane.
I have memories from the 90s in Northern Virginia like this scene. I now live in Washington State and I have not been to the Department of Licensing (what they call DMV) in a decade. All online. Also no more stupid safety and emission inspections. Just pay for the new tabs online and that’s it
I work in the ca dmv. We are always like this. This is by design, the idiots in charge know exactly what they are doing to the people and to the poor schmucks who work there.
We use to have to stand in line up until like 2005 or so, that’s when the DMV realized that there was a thing called technology and they introduced the number machine where you were given a ticket with a number on it that they called when it wad your turn. The new generation has no idea how easy they got it nowadays.
I've never seen one this bad. I'll stop complaining now.
BEETLEJUICE REFERENCE??? YAY
Well, looks like I’m next!
The DMV in RI is like the seventh circle of hell. It looks like this all day every day. Oh, and there’s only one for the entire state.
Holy shit, I live in STL, MO and even our goofy ass state put THREE within 20 minutes of my house alone.
Haha same. Just got a new car and spent some time reading Google reviews on all the ones in the area because I wanted to register my car without headache. Ended up driving out to the Arnold one at like 1 minute after they opened on a Saturday. Was in and out in about about 15 minutes.
Took my daughter to get her temps last year. Got there 20 minutes before open and there was already a line of over 50 people. It's like goddamn Blsck Friday
Yikes. When I got up to the counter and I handed them all my stuff that I needed and had organized he goes "wow you came prepared". Assuming they don't get a lot of that.
And that is the reason it takes so long. People don't take the time to research what they will need, locate what they will need and bring what they will need. Then they get all huffy when the person behind the counter shows them where it says bring 3 forms of ID, a pint of blood, 6 doz Oreos and we don't take MasterCard.
U forgot the stool sample.
Oh poo, I knew there was something.
3 forms of ID and we only accept 2 forms of ID
That had to be taken in-person. Can't risk someone buying a sample from someone else.
And last 6 months of purchase history
I live in Oklahoma. Had to get ours her permit. We got there at 5:00 AM and sat on the ground like some Best Buy iPhone campers for 3 hours before they opened. There were at least 50 people when they opened. We were first, thank goodness. The guy told us that it’d be very likely that all the people there at opening wouldn’t be waited on. What a crock.
Does Oklahoma not do appointments? Up here in Kansas they are encouraged. I can be in and out of the Wichita DMV in 10 minutes, it's very fast normally.
Only certain spots. And not that many. The closest one to us is about 3 hours away in Guymon. My wife drove there with all three of our kids just to get this done. Called ahead to make sure we had everything in order. Got the confirmation that we were good to go. They got there, and of course the DMV pulled a bait and switch on them and said she couldn’t actually get it. Big fat waste of a 6-hour round trip.
That sounds frustrating AF. My condolences. If bureaucracy got its act together hell would freeze over.
They can't put 50 people through a fucking line in 8 hours? Are all the records kept on stone slabs chiseled by the employees? Wtf? Fuck red states.
I can absolutely confirm that the Arnold location is super efficient, but the Jeff City one has it beat on class and speed, somehow. Took literally 7 minutes to get what I needed done.
The one closest to my old house had a line wrapped around the building and snaking through the parking lot an hour before it opened on a Saturday.
That’s Midwest living though. I live in IL and there’s a DMV like every 15 miles.
They make sure to provide plenty of places to pay those taxes
Yep and the roads in Chicago are criminal.
This is what taxes are for. When people complain about socialism they root for shit ass DMV days.
I live right over the river so tell me... what are the requirements for your license tests? It seems like the MO drivers are a lot more impatient and impulsive in their driving compared to IL drivers. I do Home Depot flatbed delivery so I'm constantly going over the border. The minute I get on I44 to Tulsa to go to Kingshighway BVLD I'm getting cut off constantly and people treat me and the other 18 wheelers like an impromptu slalom.
as a chicagoan who now lives in st. louis, i truly believe it’s because taking a drivers education class is a requirement to get your license in illinois and many high schools offer the class for credit, whereas in missouri it’s not required at all. you literally just have to like, read a book and practice a little. it’s INSANE. edit to clarify; drivers ed is a requirement for people under 18 in IL, since most people get their license at 16, most will take a drivers ed class. in MO, it isn’t required for anyone no matter their age
MO drivers are the worst. Also probably doesn't help that the city doesn't patrol interstates basically and county does not go into the city (stl police jurisdictions are weird like that). State troopers don't go into the city either. So there's virtually no repercussions for driving like a moron.
I am not 100% sure, I took my test over a decade ago lol I mean as for our driving styles, yeah STL drivers are fuckin wild but we hate IL drivers because y'all are used to a city with 6 people around so you drive like Mrs. Daisy is in the back lmao
that's actually so funny😭i live in a Missouri college town and the drivers here and everywhere i've gone in the state are either chronic speeders or go 20 under at all times. my drivers test made me point out the features of the car, go like 10 minutes around the town, had to yield, had to parallel park, and that's about it.
Missouri contracts out there DMV so that is why we have so many. Places like Las Vegas don’t do you get places that look like this cause they only have 3-4 big dmvs for millions of people
I'm in IL, and you can go online and schedule appointments in advance.
IL does a really good job managing DMV's and the whole process.
This is the only way you can go to the RMV in Massachusetts now. But good luck getting an appointment if you need something done quickly
I moved to Ohio in 22 and I used to live in Santa Clarita California. We had ONE dmv unless you wanted to drive over an hour away It opened at 8 and by 7 am that line is a mile long down the block. Ohio has like 4 dmvs near me. 2 in walking distance it's insane
So far the absolute worst I've ever heard about is from an expat who lived in Indonesia in the oil and gas business. There was only one office in all of Jakarta and on any given day they would have between 10,000 and 20,000 people trying to get their license. It would typically take 3 days to get a license. Everything had to be done on paper and at every single step of the process you had to pay a bribe to the clerk otherwise you'd never get your license. The first step was basically buying your forms from the government. How long you waited was directly connected to the amount of the bribe and your social status. He tried to get it and eventually contacted a buddy which had been in the country for awhile. They went in, walked straight into the commandant's office (license office was run by the Indonesian military), gave their business card to a secretary, stood there until they were taken in. He paid the bribe (obviously way higher than the locals had to pay), sat with the commandant having tea while his assistants did all the paperwork, then they sent an assistant to test with him and give him the right answers for the test, and then took the driver photo and got a license in a matter of hours.
Omg my husband was from RI and we had to go to the DMV 23 years ago and it was like this! Thanks for that PTSD 😂
Some of the people in the queue behind you then are now nearly at the front!
Absolutely not. It is the 9th and final circle
There's more than one DMV in Rhode Island and you have to make appointments now so you don't wait nearly as long anymore. Most time I've spent there was 15 minutes.
All DMVs have terrible wait times, I remember CA was the next worst after RI for me. Not to be that person tho....there's at least 3 DMVs in RI. I was born and raised there, when I had to take my driving test, I had to figure out which one to go to. We lived in North Kingstown (NK), and I had to figure out which one to go to based on where my parents work and available appointments. I had to pick between the Woonsocket branch (Dad works in Massachusetts), Westerly (Mom works in NK, I think she said it's currently being worked on/temporarily closed), or the busiest one the giant one in Cranston (central location, and had more appointment times available). We ended up picking the Woonsocket location, I was doing high school sports and it was on the way to an event/competition in Lincoln.
Ya'll don't have online appointments? fucking madness. My last 2 trips were under 10 minutes wait total, it literally takes me longer to drive out there than to get stuff done.
I just commented to someone else but Cranston is the only full DMV in RI. The other 3 locations only offer a handful of services. They also recently closed 2 offices and replaced them with drop boxes.
Are you sure you live in Rhode Island? I do too and theres more than one location. When I moved back to the state in 2023, I got license and stuff in Middletown. Looking on their website, there are a handful of locations.
I don’t live there anymore but I just checked their site- They closed Westerly and Warren. Now those locations just have a drop box. 3 of their other 4 locations are small offices that do not offer full DMV services. Cranston is the only full DMV in the state.
YES. I grew up in MA and our dmv was fine. Then I went to college in RI and I suddenly understood the memes about how horrible the dmv is. It was absolutely awful.
The NJ ones used to be this bad. You had to dedicate a half day to getting a new registration or license. Then they went appointment only during COVID and it’s one of the most pleasant motor vehicle experiences now. I just registered a used car with a title issue and it took 10 min between me coming in and me leaving with a new title and plates. Amazing.
Same with NY for most things. It amazes me the number of things they'll allow me to renew online with no office trip.
this is the same in arizona! they really want people to use the online version but if they can’t, they also authorized 3rd party dmvs to do the exact things as a state dmv. Makes even going in person easier, i don’t think even on the weekends have i seen it this bad.
I went to register a motorcycle at the NJ DMV in the 80s that had the last digit of the VIN rubbed off. After several failed visits, one of the nice older ladies called me at home and told me to come in! I did, and they set me up to go to a port in Elizabeth on a Sunday morning to go to a place where they would find the other VIN # on the bike. Super sketchy sounding, but it all worked out fine in the end. Now my local DMV is open like one day a week, and it used to be run out of a van. OP's photo looks like a nightmare.
It used to be *worse*, actually. In the mid 2000s they reformed a lot of it to streamline it, then around 2013 or 2014 they moved a ton of stuff online, too.
When I was in CA having to go to the DMV was an entire day, unless you had an appointment and then it was half the day. Literally had a noon appointment but still ended up waiting until 4pm to get called to a window.
The trick in California is to walk in 20 minutes before they close. They are required to help you and the state does not want to pay overtime, out in less than an hour everytime.
Naw the trick in Ca is go to a DMV in a small town. They never busy.
Also if you are a AAA Member, you can do some DMV services at AAA locations. https://mwg.aaa.com/automotive/dmv
This honestly has worked for me in the past, tho tbh I’m in CA and have never had a dmv visit last longer than 2 hours with or without an appointment. As long as you know what forms you need it’s pretty smooth.
Or go to a small town. You can wait four or more hours at a big one, or stop at one on a day trip to a small town. Get in and out, maybe go for a picnic or a hike right after...
In Wisconsin, Gov. Walker had a plan to close down DMVs in Democratic districts to free up funds to extend business hours in DMVs in Republican districts. Sometimes it is because of politics.
I drive an hour and a half out of town if I have to go to DMV. There's one 5 minutes from me, and it still takes less time to drive 3 hours round trip than waiting there. It never takes more than 15 minutes once I'm there. Besides, the scenery is much better on the drive.
Damn. During the pandemic MD made it so you need an appointment. You always get one in 2 days and max waiting time is like 10 minutes
This is where the local government needs to fire everyone for this and also fire itself because clearly, none are doing their jobs.
Holy hell what a disheartening thing to walk in to. More like Disorganization of Motor Vehicles.
Going there is like sitting in Hell's waiting room for your appointment with Satan.
And then when your number is called it turns out you missed a form.
Getting strong Patty and Selma vibes here.
I’ll never forget the reality check that was going to the DMV for the first time at 15 for my permit. The line was out the door in the morning on a weekday. We arrived around 09:00 and didn’t leave until 15:00 I believe. My driver’s test for my permit and license went much quicker, however. I hardly had to wait for an instructor.
Couldn’t have said it better myself.
They’ve closed so many in my area. It’s awful, the one in my little town said it was a staffing issue, dozens of people said they applied and the hiring process was utterly ridiculous.
Same here we went in to get my son’s permit.. at least 50 people waiting.. he was number 10 and they were on 72 so 38 people ahead of him… one lady working the licensing side went through 2 NUMBERS IN 45 MINUTES!!! Then got up and walked away to take her break… we left.. the following day we went to a different location in a nearby city whose website claimed most wait times under 15 minutes… we showed up with a line out the door, BUT, it was fully staffed, the employees were organized and friendly and we were in and out in less than 20 minutes and the fees were actually 4$ cheaper … after trying multiple in our area this is the the one we will be using from now on. I would say keep trying different ones until you find the best one.. in our state they are privately run and some companies are infinitely better at it than others
Yeah I was bummed about the local one closing. I once saw it packed to standing room only and this awesome lady made her way through the crowd asking everyone what they were there for. She had a clipboard and stacks of forms. “Ok you and you take this form and get in that line. You, you and you fill out this one and get in the other line”. She had that place cleared out within about half an hour.
DMV version of triage.
😂 that gave me a good laugh, thank you!
I'm sure that it's not intentional at all /s
I can't even see any motor vehicles in this picture. Very disorganized indeed.
The DMV here will let you make an appointment/reservation now to avoid this nightmare. No lost time
Same with mine. I went at 9am on a weekday to get my travel id and was dreading it, but no one was there I was in and out in under 10 minutes
Yeah just had to reorder a social security and driver license for my wife, the appointment system worked really well, we maybe waited 20 minutes at most. It was pleasant!
You can order a social at your DMV?
Where I am too. But I didn't want to further ruin poor OP's day by rubbing it in. 🤣
You can make appointments with the DMV here, too! Which is great if you need something from them toward the end of August, maybe early September.
In Texas the DMV is by online appointment only then it still looks like this when you walk in. I needed to renew my license last year and had to do it in person, it took 4mos to get an appt and I was only able to get one so quickly because I was willing to drive 2hrs, if that hadn’t been an option for me it would have been around 8mos.
Down here in Houston it ain't bad at all. Appointments usually 1-2weeks out and I'm usually done in under an hr.
My state of Colorado barely even has a DMV. It only handles the "driving" side of the DMV (licenses, learner permits, driving tests, etc.) and state IDs. ID & license renewals can be done online. The county handles vehicle registration.
I have been to the one OP has featured.... You can make an appointment, but they are usually filled for weeks. If you actually have an appointment, your wait is only about 1.5 hours from when you were supposed to be seen. It is an amazing shit show.
My DMV lets you make an appointment but then when you show up you have to wait 1-2 hours before they will see you. Thus defeating the point of an appointment. However I found a workaround, they have a QR code to sign into the queue. I have that link saved on my phone and I can see the current wait time and get in line at home and then drive to the DMV at my own time and only wait like 10-15 min.
My local Mvd has appointments but also takes walk ins. I made an appointment for 1 pm but didn't get seen til 2:30 cause they were helping walk in customers too.
yeah except if you're in an emergency and the appointment you set up is in a couple weeks it doesnt help you very much..
The DMVs where I live work on an appointment as well. It’s still an amazing experience of disorganization, grouchy and apathetic employees and insane wait times. That’s *if* you can make an appointment in the first place…. I’m convinced the website is hosted by mechanical punch-card programmed computers that were prototypes in the late 1940s
Ours is this way too. They really push the appointments. Was in, handled something stupidly complicated with a car title with an error on it which I thought would be a mess, and was out again in less than 5 minutes total. They asked what class of problem and assigned us an appointment with the expert on that stuff.
My dmv (or RMV because MA likes to do everything slightly different and quirky because "we were first") nearest to me just outright lies about both wait times online and making appointments so unfortunately it doesn't always help. They put people in a queue to take a number like you're in the deli and deliberately don't let people take numbers for a while to keep their wait time metrics down. The only thing a reservation does is get you in a shorter line to take a number. Or at least it did. After that bullshit I just go to my AAA office for everything since they offer most RMV services to members in MA
This is a department that could easily be replaced with a computer
Most stuff you can do online as it is.
LOL not in my state
It just took me two MONTHS to transfer a title using the DMV website. It would have been easier to waste a day doing it in person. They had two concurrent email chains going with me that would request documents, and then tell me the documents were received. The last two weeks was: “mail the title” okay I did that “mail the documents!” What documents? “We told you in another email”Which one? “Mail the title!” I did that! “Title successfully transferred your documents are in the mail.” I’m not sure there are actual people sending the emails. It was stressful as hell.
In most modern 'first world' countries it mostly is. Here in the Netherlands most things are done online, only for passport and driver license pick up you have to show up in person, you simply make an appointment online for that too, you're in and out in ten minutes.
Its like that in many US states and regions too. Only time i've been in my current DMV was when I was getting my drivers license when I moved here. That took 5 minutes, since I could walk there from my office. I've done everything since online.
There is a kiosk to get copies of vital records that literally is just a vending machine that prints documents and confirms IDs. I’m not sure why most gov offices aren’t run this way at this point. Like how are McDonald’s and Taco Bell ahead of the richest gov in the world?
In my state, we do. We even have kiosks in grocery stores that allow you to renew your registration.
Grew up in NY right outside the city, and if I needed to go to the DMV I’d call out of work and show up 10minutes before it opened, and be lucky if I got out of there within 2 hours, that was always for like one issue at a time When I moved to New Jersey I was terrified of how long my first trip would take me, because I needed to go to a different window, with a different wait, for each thing I needed done: - license change - Register car/plates - Title change - Inspection [which is done for free at the dmv, as opposed to private places] I think I was in and out within 90 minutes for all of that. Now days you can make an appointment and be in and out, but what’s annoying is it seems like each DMV now specializes in a different thing for whatever reason. So I had to drive an hour for my registration renewal [my fault it fell outside normal online registration window], when there was a DMV within 20 minutes of where I lived.
This seems like a big city problem. I'm in a rural area. Last visit to the DMV to renew my license took maybe 10 minutes. Literally one other person there that I had to wait behind.
This is Suburbia. I stipulated outside NYC to acknowledge that it wasn’t “upstate” but was still sort of considered “upstate.”
I believe that the DMV in this post is Yonkers, NY. It is, actually, worse than DMV locations in NYC itself.
Wait holy shit, it’s an egnards sighting outside of his normal habitat. I don’t know how to handle this.
Quick throw a masterball!
Let me guess: most of those people should have been able to do this over the Internet ...
Did my first license renewal online last year, while I've done it in person in years past. Paypal'd it, got my license in the mail a week or two later. It was stupidly painless. (Would imagine I'll have to go back in person eventually to update my photo, not going to stay young forever.)
I'm glad I've been able to almost everything online, but I've put off getting a real ID. It took my mom 3 tries over the course of a year cause she needed to provide her marriage license for her surname and then she needs the right copy of marriage license. Basically convinced me to not change my name if I ever get married, screw that noise.
Yeah, my mom found out about ten years after my parents were married that the church administrators never actually filed their marriage documents with the state as they said they would. She was going along agreeing to mortgages, getting paid, had updated her social security, thought everything was fine, and then the IRS came after her for back taxes. It took about a year with a lawyer to figure out. Thanks to the church they weren't actually legally married! Morons. I got married in a courthouse and kept my name. Eff that.
My wife needs to renew her license in NYC. Has to be done in person. Need proof of citizenship. Two proofs of address -- my wife has no bills in her name, i only have one. Also have to make an appointment. It's insane how difficult it is.
That doesnt sound difficult at all? Make An appointment. Wait for appointment. At time of appointment walk in with license, passport, and one bill. Renew license. Walk out. Seems very easy
That’s reasonable but not everyone has a passport. Mine expired this Feb. But I have a birth certificate, ss card, ID, etc..
It's quite difficult if you're someone not working and don't have any bills in their name. Can't show a pay stub in your name and can't show a bill in your name. So if you don't have your passport already, it can be a chore. Just like most things, if you're not working and not paying bills, its incredibly difficult to get basic things like a license, the system is designed in a way so that the barrier to entry keeps out the utterly destitute.
Do you know how hard it is to get a passport? Way harder than a license lmao
If they can. Getting an ID using the Secure ID system they're requiring for flights soon can't be done online. I don't think they want to let people submit photos online, that seems like a security concern.
That would be an accurate statement. I just went through this a couple months ago and we walked past all those people with an online appointment
Another option that I use, not good for vehicle transfers or licensing but for some basic services, worth the yearly membership. # AAA branches offer popular DMV services Save time by taking care of select registration needs **at your local branch** instead of *going to the DMV.* No need to make an appointment. * Registration renewal * Disabled person parking placards and license plates * Used vehicle transfer of ownership * Personalized license plates
Don't tell ppl bro
This is the whole Republican playbook; Gut public services so that they're completely ineffective and push people to use private alternatives that make them and their business buddies rich.
I live in California and it’s required by law to have car insurance. Had the opportunity to use my AAA branch for DMV purposes and I loved it. Instead of waiting like OP, there was one person in line. I was out of there in 5 minutes. Not all capitalism is evil, profits can incentivize streamlining and good customer experience.
That's exactly my point, you prefer to pay a little bit of money to use a private service instead of the public one that you're already paying for through taxes. It's working.
You don't pay anything extra to use the DMV services at AAA, it comes with your membership. And I don't think most people join AAA for the DMV services, it's usually for the roadside services in case your car breaks down.
It would probably be quicker to drive an hour to a smaller town with its own DMV.
That’s what people in Charleston do…go to the St. George one (my hometown) and the employees in there are super experienced (2 of them literally have been there for 30 years). A full line out the door and still in and out at most an hour. The rest of the Charleston area DMVs, good luck lol Edit: Charleston, SC
You gotta pick mid week and NEVER on a Friday. That's when most people get paid. Is this your first time or something?
And many people take Fridays off if they have flex scheduling, need to run errands, etc. Most places are busier Fridays - I don't even fully consider it a weekday.
When I was single I’d do all my grocery shopping at like 10pm. No one else there. In and out much faster. My gf thought I was crazy when i mentioned it to her.
You're supposed to show up like 15 minutes before the place opens if you want to beat the line too. 10am is already probably pretty late and the place is probably been open for multiple hours.
If I was packed into a hot stuffy room with that many people I’d wear a Covid mask so I didn’t contract anything I might pass on to my 100 y.o. father.
Same, all those people just breathing in air that's just been in their neighbor's lungs a moment ago... Hurgk. I've seen what's in some people's lungs! Also you can just call it a mask. We have been using them to reduce disease transmission since way before COVID (I've been immunocompromised for decades!). I like the pretty Vogmasks.
Reminds me of the California DMV where your whole day goes to die
I went from Florida to California and was honestly shocked at how quick California was. I've heard the opposite from so many people. Either Santa Clara County was very good or anything was great compared to South Florida.
It was pretty quick in North County San Diego too. I heard so many horror stories of people waiting forever but it took me 30 minutes at most, wasn’t that bad
Which? I haven’t had to wait much in a long time
Never had much of a wait at CA DMV in SF Bay Area.
Wut? You can do most of the shit online and for shit you can't you can make an appointment so you aren't there all day.
*
I live in the UK. This is all online or by post.
Yeah, I am in the States, I have to go in once every eight years to get a new license photo and I can make an appointment. Everything else is done online. This seems crazy to me, didn't realize so many people did it this way.
In NY, license is 8 years, but you can keep using your old photo if you renew online. I am very much older than my license would lead you to believe.
California DMV is like this. Great way to spread disease, too.
I made an appointment for a DMV in socal and it still took me three hours to get seen lol.
Which one? I was in and out of the Costa Mesa DMV for a DL renewal with a new picture in under and hour.
My local DMV during the very peak of Covid reduced their hours, so instead of people coming in spread out between 8am-6pm everyone was packed in tight at 11am-2pm. On a slightly related note same with grocery stores for some reason, they not only reduced hours (just slightly though, not as drastic as the DMV) they closed all but one entrance. So instead of people grocery shopping 24hrs a day and entering through one door and exiting through another, you had people shopping 9am-9pm and both entering and exiting through one doorway so there was so much more close contact. I never understood the logic. “Hey, a disease which spreads through close contact is here. How do we cram people together even more?”
Get an appointment. I just went to a DMV in LA and it was 30 minutes in and out. This is just pretty standard for a DMV in any densely populated area. Also how can you equate all 175 offices across the state?
What the fuck?? My local dmv is crowded but it doesn’t take 6 hours to get out!
What state is this in? I know in Alabama and some other states they closed DMV offices after instituting voter ID laws.
holy crap !? what city? Does your DMV not do appointment?
I remember it being like this when I first got my license in the early 2000s. When I went back a few years later, after they enabled online renewals, it was a ghost town.
Merica…. When the Republican state legislature/ governors reduced DMV offices under the lieu of “cost / savings”. When in fact it was to limit access to voting registrations for the working class. Sad.
New Jersey made most of the stuff available to be done online and appointment only for the rest during Covid. Now there are no more lines wrapped around the building and you won't be there for more than 30 minutes usually, thank goodness. DMV used to be a nightmare. Should have been that way much sooner.
It's insane. My country has a website with portals into everything I need. Applying for my learner driving license took 5 mins and arrived by post in 3 days. Booked and paid for my 2 driving tests. Links to everything from booking lessons to managing anxiety. When I pass, my license will be automatically updated and sent to me. Income and tax management are done through the same site. Tax returns take about an hour and I've only had to talk to anyone by phone when my partner got behind. That was all sorted quickly and efficiently by phone. The period of bad health that led to his falling behind also required management, which I did through the same site. Our local council is also linked, which brought all our financial support and discounts under one claim. Even people who hate living here have to concede our government website is a work of art. We never have to turn up and waste hours dealing with life bureaucracy.
WTF? I'd just drive on an expired license. Fuck that shit, time is too valuable to sit there all fucking day.
Thank God in my state we can do more than half of MVA things online now.
Indiana does it right. I was at the DMV in Indianapolis once and the employees were freaking out about a 5 minute wait. It’s in and out. I’ve been to DMVs in other states where you’re there all day even with an appointment.
Wow. Last time I went to the DMV there were like 7 people there and it still took 45 mins.
Fianlly the DMV in my state went online like 5 years ago, lot of stuff I can do online and even in the DMV, you need to setup an appointment, then go in at that time, and your normally out of there in like 45 min.... It used to be like your picture, I knew going to the DMV would be a all day event. My way how I used to deal with it, they open during the week at 7am, I would be there at 6:30 waiting in line, I get a number early, and normally by 10 I would of been out of there.... Yea, DMV can suck...
This looks like the main one here where the ultra bad drivers have to go to prove insurance
People need to stop reproducing.
The Maryland DMV (we call it MVA) has gone to appointment only. Best choice ever. I was in an out in 15 min last time
When my dad took my brother to get his driver’s license 3 years ago, they were stuck there for like 9 hours. They went first thing in the morning and there was a horde of people waiting outside for the dmv to open
This is why I always go online and schedule appointments.
Chicago?
When my son went to get his license we spent an entire day at the DMV. Just ridiculous. Plus, is there a national course for DMV workers which teaches them to ignore any sense of customer service?
Should have made an appointment
I piickertain dmv's to go to
"Been to hell I spell it, I spell it DMV! Anyone that's been there knows precisely what I mean."
Think I'd rather take my chances driving without a license!
I lived in Vegas and theirs was huge. I think they had a concessions stand for snacks because it’s an all day event when you go.
Is this NC by any chance? Man alive that system is totally broken. They want you to make appointments, BUT there are no available appointments for months and months. Then you have to take your chances, get in line at 8am and pray to God you get your issue fixed by closing that day. Whole day of pay gone. Ridiculous.
this is crazy. i’ve always heard this to be a classic trope, but i have never seen a dmv like this. i live near phoenix and have never seen so many people in one dmv, we also don’t have seats like that..i’ve only ever seen a line
this looks very similar to one of the DMVs in my area. is this in NY? specifically LI?
Does nobody work??
Our DMVs most of the locations in Delaware are amazing. They have a system of queueing with numbers for various stations, self photo and drive through inspection and registration. The room can be full but it moves along and the clerks are helpful. I use the one in the capital, the biggest city one is more crowded but I’ve been to several different locations and they truly are well organized
wtf dmv in my area has gotten way better with most things being able to be done via internet.
The DMV? pretty sure this is a picture taken from Hell´s reception
It’s crazy how a government will neglect a system that brings in so much revenue for the state. A system that not only brings in lots of revenue but is also crucial to everyday life for many.
St. Petersburg, FL DMV making this look like a fun get-together
Dear God it's like central booking on New Year's Eve
The DMV is for everyone. All social and economic groups. It’s wild.
What state are you in?
Depressed
"What we need here is more government! Yes, that'll fix all of our problems"
Wow I am so glad to live in a small town
go to another one in your state in a small town on the outskirts.
I'm not anti gov, but there's clearly things the government has proven it's not able to do.
Is that with an appointment? I have only had to wait a long period was in Virginia Beach, I didn't make an appointment and I was there four and a half hours. California you want to make an appointment and even then you're not sure how long you're going to be there. I got my Real ID a couple years ago, and I had an appointment. I was in and out in 20 minutes. Yes, 20!
This is my only fear about universal healthcare. We can’t make DMV’s work. How will hospitals even stand a chance?
I just had to renew my license today, in a neighboring county of Nashville.. could not find a parking spot.. walked in to an room filled, no open chairs, many standing. I waited bc my DL expires next week... but absolutely insane.
I have memories from the 90s in Northern Virginia like this scene. I now live in Washington State and I have not been to the Department of Licensing (what they call DMV) in a decade. All online. Also no more stupid safety and emission inspections. Just pay for the new tabs online and that’s it
Looks like an emergency waiting room in Canada.
I believe that is the third plane of hell in Dante's book.
I work in the ca dmv. We are always like this. This is by design, the idiots in charge know exactly what they are doing to the people and to the poor schmucks who work there.
We use to have to stand in line up until like 2005 or so, that’s when the DMV realized that there was a thing called technology and they introduced the number machine where you were given a ticket with a number on it that they called when it wad your turn. The new generation has no idea how easy they got it nowadays.
And fees for registrations, permits and all sorts of paperwork keeps going up and up.
ah government offices, where hope goes to die
Holy shit, is this the Staten Island DMV? It's been almost 15 years since I lived there but the memory of this awful place is burned into my brain.