North Carolina DMV Posts Wait Times Online for 115 Driver’s License Offices

The North Carolina Division of Motor Vehicles launched a system showing wait times at each of its 115 driver's license offices. Customers can check the website before choosing which location to visit.

More than 85% of customers served at these offices arrive without an appointment. Paul Tine, the commissioner, said the tool helps people pick which office to visit when one location shows a three-hour wait and another shows just 15 minutes.

Gov. Josh Stein announced the feature last week. The announcement happened at the opening of a new driver's license office in Belville. He said customers who live near multiple offices no longer have to guess.

"You might get lucky and go to one with a shorter line, or you might have made a bad choice and ended up in one with a much longer line," Stein said, according to The News & Observer. "That in and of itself is frustrating. Well, no longer."

Wait times across the system have dropped. Last summer, the average was about two hours and 45 minutes. Now it's 37 minutes. The reduction came from adding staff and offering more online transactions, Tine said.

The posted times can vary. The Hillsborough office showed a 100- to 120-minute wait Thursday morning, while Carrboro showed 60 to 80 minutes. Clayton customers faced waits ranging from 140 to 160 minutes, compared to 20 to 40 minutes in Wendell.

The agency tracks wait times from when a customer checks in with an employee and enters a queue. The estimates will get more accurate as the agency learns how long different transactions take, Tine said.

The agency rolled out a similar system in 2023 but removed it after complaints. Customers said the posted times did not include waits in line outside the building.

Now an employee checks each customer in when they arrive. Customers get a text message showing how many people are waiting ahead of them. They can sit in their car, take a walk, or visit a store until another text tells them to return to the lobby.

Stein pushed to bring back the estimated wait times, Tine said. Both officials say the estimates are conservative to avoid disappointing customers who arrive expecting shorter waits.

Customers can see wait times by clicking or hovering over icons for each office on the locator map at www.ncdot.gov/dmv/offices-services/locate-dmv-office/. The service does not cover the 127 license plate offices run by private contractors.