Long lines, short tempers: So just how bad is the wait at the DMV for a REAL ID? – The Tennessean
Just after sunrise Monday morning, Michelle Facchinello and her son, Ashton, stood in a newly formed line that would later snake around a state-run facility in Franklin, both hoping to get their driver’s licenses.
To be there, the two had to make accommodations: Facchinello took off work, while her son was set to miss his first few high school classes of the day.
“The last time I was here, I was getting my license renewed,” she said.
Facchinello was one of hundreds of people who flocked to a driver’s license facility in Tennessee on Monday in hopes of getting their REAL ID — a new license that has a higher security standard — ahead of next year’s deadline.
With thousands of people using the state’s facilities every day, residents like Facchinello have grown frustrated over technology problems and long wait times.
To assess the ongoing issues residents of the Volunteer State are facing as they head to driver’s license centers, the USA TODAY Network – Tennessee dispatched 10reporters throughout the state on Monday.
The review found Tennesseans braving cold weather while arriving as early as two hours before facilities open and customers using vacation days to get their licenses. Reporters, most of whom obtained their own REAL IDs on Monday to gauge how long the process takes, witnessed overcrowded parking lots and countless people sent away for not having the correct documents.
The review comes as people throughout the state and country attempt to get their REAL IDs — a federal mandate that requires state residents to obtain the higher security ID by October 2020 to fly on a commercial flight or visit federal facilities. Passports will also be an acceptable form of identification for flying.
Jeff Long, the Department of Safety and Homeland Security commissioner, told lawmakers this week as many as 53% of the total transactions at driver’s license facilities in Tennessee on Tuesday were for REAL IDs.
Long said since the state began issuing the IDs in July, more than 272,600 residents had obtained one.
The news organization sent reporters to many of the facilities the Department of Safety and Homeland Security, which oversees driver’s licenses, has said have the longest wait times, including locations in Nashville, Springfield, Memphis, Murfreesboro and Franklin.
To address the ongoing issues around the state, the agency has been working to convince county clerks to process residents’ applications and hired new employees.
Although many facilities in Tennessee have lengthy wait times, others operate smoothly. In Knoxville, Dave Riestenburg, 45, a geologist, arrived at 8 a.m., 30 minutes before the facility opened. While waiting, state employees checked with the handful of people who lined up to verify they had adequate documentation, a point praised by Riestenburg, who was finished before 9 a.m.
Half an hour before a driver’s license center opened in Memphis, an employee separated the approximately 50 people waiting into two lines: one for people who wanted to renew their license and were planning to pay with a credit or debit card and everyone else. Employees said the line was typical of Mondays and Fridays, their busiest days of the week.
The state is dispatching employees to serve as liaisons to verify the reason and documents for those in line.
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For those standing in line and waiting for service, many were resigned to the fact that they might be waiting awhile.
“I came prepared,” said University of Memphis student Bryce Ellis, 21, holding up a brown leather satchel bag. “I brought homework to do just in case, and I have a book to read.”
Work remains, despite progress
Although some facilities have seen success, work remains. Many Tennesseans told reporters they had been returning for their second and third time after being told their documents were inadequate.
In Murfreesboro, Kenneth Davis waited in line for more than an hour, only to learn the copy of his birth certificate wasn’t valid. He was told he’d have to contact the state of Montana, where he was born, for a new one.
At an express facility in downtown Nashville, a state employee asked people to quiet down and pay attention.
“Do not sit here for an hour, two hours and not have your documents,” she said. “If you need to leave to get something and come back, let us know.”
Beyond documentation issues, many of Tennessee’s facilities identified with the longest wait times shared other problems.
Parking lots are quickly filled, forcing residents to park in makeshift spots or risk getting towed.
In Gallatin, a tiny parking lot reached capacity by the more than 50 residents who lined up before the facility opened, forcing newcomers to park in an adjacent grassy area.
Inside and outside the facility, Tennesseans had many gripes: One man proclaimed over his phone the lines are every bit as bad as indicated by news coverage; a woman expressed disappointment after being told there’s no Wi-Fi; and another man said despite reports of additional state workers being hired, there’s been little improvement.
Frustrations at an express facility in Nashville led to an argument as residents lunged toward a set of iPads, which are used to process customers. A man who had been waiting in line before the facility’s doors opened raised his voice, saying that it wasn’t fair that newcomers could get to a payment line quicker than those who waited.
Lucinda Craig became so upset at a state facility in Clarksville that she embraced the 40-degree weather outside the building.
“I hate it here,” said the 47-year-old. “There’s nowhere to sit, and I hear them say, ‘Don’t block the door,’ but we have nowhere to sit. So what do you do? It’s not our fault that you don’t have enough space.”
A breeding ground of confusion
Although reporters for the USA TODAY Network – Tennessee’s review of driver’s license facilities did not experience technology issues, as has occasionally been the case in recent months, there were other complications, leaving residents confused.
A lack of written instructions at a facility in Franklin, and frequent shouting from employees calling out names and numbers, made it a breeding ground for confusion, as a line of people curled around the perimeter of the waiting room.
As the morning wore on, those who entered the building on Carothers Parkway were met with few written instructions on how to proceed.
With no intercom system, residents relied on employees to say their names loud enough so they knew when it was their turn. For those who were hard of hearing, the task was difficult in such a noisy facility.
And then there’s the wait times.
Some facilities in Tennessee have seen two hour-plus wait times. Although the statewide average wait time is more than 45 minutes, officials readily admit the assessment is inaccurate because it factors in only when people receive a ticket. Lines that form before the facilities open are also not considered.
On Monday, wait times varied throughout the state, the shortest being in Knoxville, which is not among the state’s facilities struggling with issues.
In Gallatin, customers who arrived about 9 a.m. were out the door roughly an hour later. At the express center in Nashville, a reporter who arrived 20 minutes before the facility opened at 8:30 a.m. was finished by 9:30 a.m.
In Clarksville, it took one customer two hours and 40 minutes to get an ID. In Franklin, it took a reporter more than four hours to get a REAL ID.
State seeks 80 more employees
Earlier this month, the Department of Safety and Homeland Security asked the governor’s office for $7.7 million to hire 80 employees for the driver services division. The staff would be spread out over the 11 locations with the worst wait times — including in Nashville and Memphis.
State officials, including Gov. Bill Lee, have expressed confidence that their latest moves will address an issue that has long plagued Tennessee.
But Tennesseans utilizing the state’s driver’s license facilities on Monday offered a host of recommendations for the state to consider.
Devon Morse, 22, who got her REAL ID at a Springfield facility, said an appointment system could help reduce the lengthy wait times for residents seeking services.
Morse said California, which is where she moved from, has such a system.
“This way I know I’m not wasting my time, sitting here until 4 or 5 o’clock without being seen,” she said. “It kind of gives you reassurance that you will be seen that day.”
Morse said the state could also consider partnerships with organizations, an idea officials have been discussing.
“In California, we could do some of our driver’s license services through our insurance company,” she said. “I would be willing to pay for the added convenience here.”
Elizabeth Brown, 77, who brought her 15-year-old daughter, Cierra, to the Hart Lane driver services center in Nashville so she could get a state ID, had a different suggestion.
With a fixed income, Brown said her daughter needed the state ID to help with costs around the house, including school clothes.
Her recommendation: have Lee wait in a line at a driver’s license facility.
“Let him stand out here and wait once or twice and he’ll fix this,” Brown said. “Let him go through this and he’ll hurry up and fix this.”
Reporters Monica Kast, Corinne Kennedy, Nicole Young, Brinley Hineman, Alexis Clark, Holly Meyer, Madalyn Hoerr and Elaina Sauber contributed to this report.
Reach Joel Ebert at jebert@tennessean.com or 615-772-1681 and on Twitter @joelebert29.
Published 8:53 AM EST Nov 21, 2019
