More MVC Agencies Issuing Real ID Licenses, But You Can’t Get It Before St. Patrick’s Day
More than 50% of state motor vehicle agencies are now issuing the more secure Real ID drivers license, required for domestic air travel, but if you haven’t made an appointment to get one, you’re out of luck until St. Patrick’s Day.
The number of state Motor Vehicle Commission agencies certified to issue the license needed for air travel ID increased to 22, up from 15 in November.
“We currently have twenty-two out of thirty-nine agencies that are fully compliant and issuing Real ID’s by appointment,” said William Connolly, a state Motor Vehicle Commission spokesman. “We currently have one agency in testing. A second agency will be put into test on December twenty-sixth.”
But the earliest appointment at many agencies isn’t available until St. Patrick’s Day or beyond, based on an NJ Advance Media check of the first open date for an appointment, using the state Motor Vehicle Commission website.
“Right now, there is still more demand than appointment slots, but we have substantially added to our capacity to handle demand, as our phased rollout has progressed,” Connolly said. “Many more customers have signed up at RealIDNJ.com than have scheduled appointments.”
Drivers can only make an appointment if they signed up on the MVC website to be alerted by email when an agency near them is taking reservations. Some drivers said they haven’t received that reply email to make an appointment.
As of Dec. 20, the MVC has issued approximately 8,000 Real ID licenses, he said. The clock is ticking for travelers who want to use a driver’s license as proof of their identity for domestic air travel. By Oct. 1, 2020, only Real ID licenses will be accepted at the airport. Passports and other federal IDs can be used instead.
To avoid long lines and waits, seen in other states, the MVC is not issuing Real ID licenses to “walk-up” customers. The MVC didn’t have statistics of how many drivers were unable to make appointments.
“We do not track customers’ appointment attempts online, so we cannot say how many drivers who have signed up at REALIDNJ.com have attempted to make an appointment to obtain a Real ID,” Connolly said.
The MVC began a phased in roll out of Real ID in late September by beta testing motor vehicle agencies and certifying them to make appointments to issue Real ID licenses after any bugs revealed by testing were eliminated.
“We are adding new appointment slots all the time as new agencies start offering Real IDs, camera stations are added to compliant agencies, and our staff gets faster processing Real ID’s,” Connolly said. “Our average transaction time is approximately 14 minutes.”
Agencies issuing Real ID licenses by appointment are: Trenton, Eatontown, Delanco, Medford, Cherry Hill, South Brunswick, Bayonne, Camden, Flemington, Freehold, Springfield, East Orange, South Plainfield, West Deptford, Hazlet, Manahawkin, Somerville, Runnemede, Salem, Turnersville, North Bergen, and Jersey City.
Larry Higgs may be reached at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @commutinglarry. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
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