CT DMV Wait Times Nearly Triple After Computer Overhaul

By: Bridget Clerkin November 9, 2015
CT drivers can expect long wait times at the DMV.
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Patrons at the Connecticut Department of Motor Vehicles were seeing triple last month, after wait times at the government agency grew by nearly 60 minutes in a year-over-year assessment.

The hour-long jump took place in September and October, when the average wait times at the CT DMV skyrocketed to 98 minutes and 95 minutes, respectively, compared to fall of 2014, when a typical DMV-goer clocked in a respective 37- and 31-minute wait.

Other DMV offices across the state had lines take 5 times longer to get through compared to last year’s wait times.

Ironically, the problem bubbled up just weeks after the state closed all 19 of its motor vehicle offices in order to complete a $25 million computer software installation that it hoped would streamline the DMV process.

The hour-and-a-half waits in September and October actually represented an improvement from the days following the August software installment, which took place from the 11-15.

After reopening on the 18th of that month, Department of Motor Vehicles offices across the state had patrons waiting in snaking lines that led outside the buildings, with some customers reporting a nearly 7-hour wait, according to the Hartford Courant.

In the wake of the growing wait times, Connecticut state officials have pledged to hold hearings to examine what went wrong and how it can be dealt with, while at the same time urging residents to be patient during the adjustment period following the software change.

While the 95-minute figure for October represents the average across the state, year-over-year wait time comparisons varied in offices across the state, including:

  • Hamden—Wait times increased 5-fold in October 2015, at 115 minutes, compared to 22 minutes in October 2014.
  • Bridgeport—Waits nearly tripled from 39 minutes in October 2014 to 128 minutes in October of this year.
  • Waterbury—Waits jumped up to 78 minutes last month, from 27 minutes in October 2014.
  • Wethersfield—Customers waited an average of 78 minutes in October 2015, compared to 41 minutes during the same time last year.
  • Enfield—With the smallest jump in the state, wait times went from 42 minutes last year to 68 minutes in October 2015.

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