At the DMV

[Dark Psion]

Yes, I had decided to get a driver's liscense, as much as I dislike driving, my dad's driving is scaring me more

While my home town has two tag agencies, we have no DMV. I have to go to a nearby town 30 miles away, which is added difficulty considering you can't drive there.

Well my brother's wife gives me a ride and I get there at 8:30 in the morning and I take the written test as 11:30.

I should have brought 2 books to read.

They have people take a number up to 30, because that is all they can do till lunch and I had #24 at 8:30. So for the next 3 hours I get to observe people coming in, seeing the room full of people waiting and ignore us and go right in and announce that they are here to take their Driving Test!

The DMV guys must be used to it because every time they were very diplomatic as they pointed out that so was everybody else and that they were out of numbers and it would be best if they came back after lunch when they would hand them out again.

Now most people would say OK and come back later.

But others would stand there a moment, wondering why they were not being treated as the most important person in the world and by which method of SC behavior would get their way, but realizing that the testers were armed state troopers,.....they eventually left.

Except for this one lady, she was so confused as to why she would have to wait in line that she wandered in and out of the DMV at least 6 times, never saying anything, she just gave all of us a disgusted look and left again.

You also see an interesting variety of people at a DMV.
A Vietnamese couple just imigrated to America.
A elderly Korean man getting his first Drivers Licence.
A 7 foot tall guy with more piercings than a porcupine has quills.
A guy with a flaming red mohawk.
A old man in 90s who was told he needs his birth certifcate to renew his licence; "I don't think I ever had one."

[BookstoreEscapee]

I learned long ago...never ever go to the DMV (or the MVC*, as New Jersey renamed it several years ago) without something to read.

*MVC = Motor Vehicle Comission

[Fawn]

The DMV here (south western Ontario) has scheduled driving tests, so you have to book an appointment in advance in order to take it, which is nice to have. No waiting in line.

To get your drivers permit you have to take a written test, which you need a load of information in order to prove your a citizen and you are who you say you are. Can be a bit of a line up, but otherwise its pretty quick. Apparently certain days are slower then others (mentioned to me by the nice lady working there). In my city its called the DriveTest Center. The name changed in the last year. Kind've annoying to say the least.

[jb17kx]

Ha, we have a much better name: VicRoads Customer Service Centre

Unfortunately, that doesn't change the fact that they are a huge bureaucracy experienced in the art of chaos and saying "no" in creative and arbitrary ways.

The procedure for getting one's license here is convoluted and drawn out but ultimately probably worth it. One starts by obtaining a learner's permit, which requires one to provide sufficient identification and pass a knowledge and eyesight test. After you've held that learner's permit for at least one year and 120 hours of logged experience, you're onto the provisional license and so on...

Fortunately tests are by appointment here as well, and you can do a lot of other things on the net.

[MrSunshineState]

A 7 foot tall guy with more piercings than a porcupine has quills.

LOL!

That reminds me of a story. No suck at all, it was just a funny sight.


I took my dog to the vet one day to get her shots and test for heart worms, basic dog stuff. The entrance is a huge set of glass double doors so you can see everybody coming in.

Up rides this dude on a chopper. Everything about him SCREAMS badass biker. He pulls up on the bike. He is wearing a tank top with a denim jacket with the sleeves cut off. Dark glasses. Bandanna. Blue jeans with tears and a chain wallet. Combat boots. His arms are COVERED in tattoos...............





















.......he is carrying a fluffy little Pomeranian



Kills me to this day.

[PhotoChick]

Wait where was the dog while the biker was driving?

[MrSunshineState]

I assume it was in a basket on the handlebars


Seriously though, he looked like he had some sort of doggie carrier on the back of his bike.

[Reyneth]

That reminds me of a story. No suck at all, it was just a funny sight.

Up rides this dude on a chopper. Everything about him SCREAMS badass biker.

.......he is carrying a fluffy little Pomeranian

That reminds me that tonight I was reminded that big biker dudes can have hearts of gold.

A radio station in the area has a "tree of lights" - a tree shape outlined by strings of lights totaling 5,000 bulbs. It for every $5 donated (by a single person or when change adds up to that) they light a bulb and the goal is to have the whole thing lit up in two days. All of the proceeds go to a wonderful homeless shelter.

Well, tonight was the first night. On my way home I had the honor of hearing "Ox" calling in to say his biker group just raised $1500 for the tree. And if any other groups of any kind were able to give a donation of $1000 or more, they'd match it. Oh, and another group - the Hell's Angels - would be at the donation center tomorrow with tons of Toys for Tots. If it wasn't for the roads being a little slippery, I would have right then and there, I was so touched!

[Becks]

I learned long ago...never ever go to the DMV (or the MVC*, as New Jersey renamed it several years ago) without something to read.

*MVC = Motor Vehicle Comission

I've been to the DMV in Waukesha (WI) and in Lodi (NJ) and got in and out in record time.

I'm special.

[smileyeagle1021]

OT: for everyone in utah on thse boards who doesn't know it yet, the farmington office has the shortest lines in the state.

less OT: I hate the rose park DLD (drivers license division)... they said they would need a copy of my utility bill to prove residence, well I didn't have my utility bill so I went to the utility companies and asked for reciepts showing that I was paying for service, and the lady at the DLD wouldn't accept it because it only proved I paid for the service not that I lived at that address (why on God's green earth would I be paying for utilities at a place I don't live)

On topic, it never ceases to amaze me that there are still people out there that don't understand how the DMV works. Of course there are long lines, and yes they do turn people away, if you don't know this yet may I suggest you find your nearest outlet that sells bus passes, because you definitely aren't smart enough to operate a motor vehicle yourself.

[BookstoreEscapee]

That reminds me that tonight I was reminded that big biker dudes can have hearts of gold.

So true...I used to do the Super Cities Walk for Multiple Sclerosis. The first time I did it, it was a 15km walk (a little over 9 miles; since been shortened to 10km/6.? miles) and they had a guy driving the route in his car in case anyone got hurt or whatever and needed a ride back to the start/end point (it was a big loop). They also had a group of volunteers from some biker group who rode the route on their bikes, with walkie-talkies so they could call that guy in the car if they came upon someone who needed help (since several guys on bikes could cover many more points of the route at once than one guy in a car). I hurt my knee about 5 minutes out that year and at one point it was getting pretty sore (but I still finished the walk, though possibly to my knee's future detriment - I still have problems with it sometimes) and one of the biker guys saw me taking a rest and rubbing the back of my knee and stopped to make sure I was OK. He was scary lookin' but really nice.

On driving tests: I don't know all the rules now, but when I started driving (15 years ago) you could get your learner's permit at 16 and your license at 17. You had to do 6 hours of driving lessons (some schools do it in drivers' ed, but my school only did the written test, which they do sophomore year, when I was 15). Any time after your 6 hours you could take the test. I got my permit the day before I turned 17, took my 6 hours over the next week (with, as it turned out, the father of a kid I went to middle school with), and my test was about 2 weeks later. (Is it any wonder I totalled the car six months later? I hardly had any real supervised driving practice. My parents did make sure I drove with them in bad weather conditions and whatnot for the first few times, but when the weather was nice I was allowed to drive myself. The day of my accident was sunny and clear.)

I know now they have graduated licensing rules...including restrictions on when you can drive (if you are under 18 you can't drive past midnight) and how many minor passengers a minor driver is allowed to have in the car (I believe it's one).

[ContraCorriente]

When I went to get my license, I was in the waiting area with a priest, a Russian "little person," and a five-foot-tall Asian girl wearing black and white leggings and red boots offering everyone that came in the door a free chicken salad sandwich. No lie.

[Slow-Jo]

eeep! all you people are scaring me! i have to get my drivers pretty quick here (ive been putting it off because i bike everywhere, but alas my bike was stole last week so im wheeless.)
i had no clue the lines would be so long! though id probably just take my number walked the 2 blocks buy a book and hunker down for the long wait.

[Shengirl]

eeep! all you people are scaring me! i have to get my drivers pretty quick here (ive been putting it off because i bike everywhere, but alas my bike was stole last week so im wheeless.)
i had no clue the lines would be so long! though id probably just take my number walked the 2 blocks buy a book and hunker down for the long wait.

Oh, it definitely depends. In my case, there was just a wee chunk of time to get a learner's permit (wait time, eye test, written test). The time of day I chose helped a lot. Then, you have to make an appointment for your driving test, at least here you do. So there's not too much waiting there, either.

The MVA (Motor Vehicle Administration, Maryland's version of the DMV) is nice here. I've always dealt with friendly and helpful staff. My tester even told me my parallel parking job wasn't close enough, so I could use the remaining allotted time to fix it. ^_^ He didn't have to do that.

[ArenaBoy]

I've only had to go into the DMV (Secretary of State Office in Michigan) twice so far, I have to go in next year (will be 21 next October). Good god I hate the lines. The first time I went in there was to replace my license. I was 16 at the time and I lost my license swimming (Long story). 2nd time was to register my car, line was so long that I nearly fell asleep.