On July 11th, I spent
6 hours in Old Saybrook at the Department of Motor Vehicles to obtain a copy of documentation for a car that I am registering in Kentucky.
It took 20 minutes queued up outside to enter the DMV building to receive a number which also had a time stamp on it. It was another 6 hours before that number would be called.
This was not an anomaly. This seems to be routine operational style for the Connecticut DMV. In May, I had spent
4 hours plus at the Old Saybrook DMV
to get information on the procedure I needed to follow.
According to the DMV website, I could have used their website instead of going to the DMV office. The site says that there is a
90 day processing time.
In December 2016, Governor Malloy had announced that problems with the computer programs at the DMV had been resolved and the operation would now be streamlined so that there would be practically no wait.
Checking the Connecticut DMV website I found an interesting interactive which indicates the current waiting times at each DMV in Connecticut.
Click Here to Visit the CT DMV Wait Times Link
The wait time is updated every five minutes.
Checking at 12:17 PM on Thursday
It was 9 minutes wait for an Express Transaction
It was 22 minutes for a CDL & Motorcycle Testing
It was 43 minutes for a Dealer Transaction
It was 1 hour and 39 minutes for a Registration Transaction
These in no way indicate the true conditions at CT DMV offices.
Two visits to the DMV about a month apart found the 4 and 6 hour waits.
Complaints both times from other patient waiters indicated the same
extraordinary long waits.
This contrasts with my Kentucky Motor Vehicle Registration Experience last week.
Vehicle registrations are handled at the county government offices.
I was the first one in line for car registration. The clerk was at the counter.
No one else came in to register a car while I was there.
This was in Frankfort, the capital of Kentucky.
The Connecticut experience also contrasts with that of the gentleman sitting beside me
in Old Saybrook for those many hours. He had been in the Florida Department
of Motor Vehicle the week before and he was in and out of the Florida DMV in 15 minutes.
6 hours + 4 hours in CT DMV for 10 minutes at the counter!
We love the great things about Connecticut too!
Submissions are always welcome to let us know your CT experiences.
