One of the rights of passage for American teens is a trip to a testing center to take the exam that if passed allows them to obtain a driver's license. It is a visit that involves equal amounts of anticipation and trepidation. It many instances, unfortunately, it also requires a substantial investment of time. The wait, many Tennesseans can tell you, is often epic. Gov. Bill Haslam and the Department of Safety want to reduce it. A lot of folk would be mighty pleased if they can.
The governor gets points for even tackling the problem. Wait times have been a problem for years and earlier efforts to shorten them have floundered. Haslam, however, is resolute. He mentioned the lengthy waits in his State of the State talk in March. Now, his administration has a plan to reduce the average time in driver service centers from about 50 minutes to less than 30 minutes. Good luck with that.
There are physical problems and semantic problems to be overcome. Even the current wait times are problematic. Officials admit the current average of 51 minutes does not always include the time individuals wait before reaching a center's front counter to be issued a number. That's when the state starts counting wait time.
Sometimes, though, it can take an hour or more to reach the counter. Clearly, the total time it can take or obtain or renew a license or transact other business can be lengthy.
Officials hope to reduce waits by extending center hours, streamlining administration and oversight, and upgrading computer systems. The effort will be complicated by increasing workloads at the centers.
A new law requires Tennessee voters to show a photo ID before casting a ballot. Registered voters without a driver's license or acceptable ID -- typically the elderly, the disabled and the poor -- can get a photo ID for free at service centers, but the additional foot traffic could complicate the effort to reduce wait times.
The wait at centers around the state currently varies considerably. The average wait at the Bonny Oaks Center here is about 67 minutes, among the state's highest. At the center on Cherokee Boulevard it is about 45 minutes. In Cleveland, it is almost 75 minutes. The shortest waits in the state, the Department of Safety reports, are about 20 minutes. The longest is in Blountville, where it takes about 85 minutes.
If the administration's plan to shorten wait times is successful -- and here's hoping it is -- Tennesseans of all political persuasions and ages will have reason to celebrate.