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Counties Face Tough Task Of Cutting Wait Times At DMV Offices

By Lauren DiSpirito

GREELEY, Colo. (CBS4) - The average wait time for motor vehicle registration and renewals in Weld County is now 90 minutes, up from 60 minutes two years ago. In the worst cases, customers have waited up to three hours at a time.

This week, Weld County Clerk and Recorder Carly Koppes put out a news release calling for patience and explaining some of the factors that are contributing to increased wait times.

Since 2014, Koppes' office has seen a 14 percent increase in the number of title transactions it completes, including vehicle, trailer, ATV and motorized equipment registrations and renewals. She attributes the bulk of the dramatic increase to population growth.

Weld County Clerk and Recorder Carly Koppes
Weld County Clerk and Recorder Carly Koppes is interviewed by CBS4's Lauren DiSpirito (credit: CBS)

"We've not seen these numbers or this big of a jump in the last decade or so," Koppes said. "For every one house you have at least two registrations or title transactions that have to come through us."

Weld County is one of the fastest growing regions, not just in Colorado, but across the country. At the end of last year, Koppes noticed an especially sharp increase in new registrations.

With the increase in wait times, comes increased frustration.

Tim Wood waited an hour to complete his vehicle title transaction. He made sure to go to the Greeley office on his day off.

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The Weld County DMV (credit: CBS)

"I went out, walked around a little bit, tried to keep preoccupied until my number got closer," Wood said. "If you were trying to do it on your lunch break or something like that at work, you wouldn't be able to do it today."

Janis Williams and Valarie Underwood also waited about one hour, and left knowing they would each have to return with more paperwork to complete their transactions.

"After you stood there an hour it makes you kind of cranky," Williams said.

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The Weld County DMV (credit: CBS)

"It's obviously not the best conditions in there for everybody to be waiting in, with everybody crammed into a hallway," Underwood added. "We were fine because we were together, and obviously, brought a friend to endure the pain with."

By the time the Weld County office opens at 7:30 a.m., Koppes says there is already a line through the building's lobby. Her employees see a slight slowdown in activity between 10-11 a.m. They face another rush of customers starting at 4 p.m., and although the office closes at 5 p.m., employees are typically there still seeing people who made it into line before doors close until after 6 p.m. A typical transaction takes 20 to 30 minutes.

To deal with delays, Koppes says she hired five additional full-time employees last year. She's on a steering committee to develop a new complex statewide motor vehicle system that will replace the current lagging, 30-year-old program. Despite efforts, Koppes has seen an increase in hostility toward her employees. She put out the news release hoping people would have a better understanding of the challenges motor vehicle offices are facing.

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The Weld County DMV (credit: CBS)

"We know that there is a wait time issue, we know that we need to improve upon that, and we are definitely doing everything that we possibly can," Koppes said. "Unfortunately, there are some customers who still aren't very nice and you have to give these ladies on the front line a lot of credit for some of things they have to deal with."

In Larimer County, after seeing wait times exceed 90 minutes at points during the last 2 1/2 years, clerk and recorder Angela Myers says the average wait time has dropped back down to its typical 20 to 40 minute range. She attributes the decrease to a recent staff increase, faster processing of back office work, and a new a measure rolled out in February to allow customers to book appointments online. Myers says she also staffs her lobby with liaisons meant to answer questions in person and put more information on the county's website.

"We all put our heads together," Myers said, "and asked, 'how can we become more efficient, given this new normal?'"

RELATED: Privatizing DMV Bill Passes Senate, Heads To House

Boulder County officials say they are looking for additional resources and promoting online vehicle registration renewal to deal with the impact of rapid population growth.

"Our staffing levels in Motor Vehicle have not changed for at least 14 years. This has, in part, contributed to our wait times increasing to about 20 minutes on average in recent years from a 12-minute wait time," Boulder County Clerk Hillary Hall wrote.

In 2015, Hall's office says it serviced over 52,000 more transactions, including registrations, temporary permits, handicap placards, and duplicate tiles, than in 2009.

LINK: Department of Revenue - Division of Motor Vehicles

Lauren DiSpirito is CBS4's Northern Newsroom reporter. Follow her on Twitter @CBS4Lauren. Share your story ideas with her here.

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