Driver License offices re-open after being closed for longer than anticipated

SHERMAN, Texas (KXII) - After days of waiting, motorists are finally able to get important documents at the Sherman Texas Department of Public Safety.

DPS offices throughout the state were closed while a DL system upgrade was being installed. Appointments from September first through the eighth were cancelled. Offices originally “were scheduled to reopen on Tuesday, Sept. 5. However, despite prior testing, a capacity issue caused by the upgrade overloaded the system and services became unavailable,” according to the DPS website. On Monday, the doors re-opened.

The DPS sent News 12 an email that read: “Driver License (DL) Offices are back open across the state today and no major issues are reported. Our customer service team continues working to rebook customers impacted by the cancellations caused by last week’s driver license system upgrade in order to give them priority rebooking as quickly as possible. Our goal is to accommodate customers in the next two to three weeks, or at the customer’s earliest convenience.”

Last week’s closure impacted all drivers license services, including renewing or replacing a license or ID card, getting a copy of a driving record, and verifying eligibility, both online and in offices.

The DPS site lists that the upgrades are as follows: “The scheduled upgrade that took place implemented the American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators (AAMVA) State-to-State (S2S) Verification Service. S2S is a way for a state to electronically check with all other participating states to determine if an applicant currently holds a driver license or identification card there, and then take appropriate action. This upgrade is required in order for Texas to be REAL ID compliant... The upgrade also speeds up the sharing of driver history records, so information is being shared between states, giving requestors a more complete picture of a driver’s history and improving safety.”

The email includes steps on what to do if your appointment was cancelled, stating “Anyone who had an appointment that was cancelled Sept. 5-8 and has not yet been rebooked, or who received an email with a link to the appointment scheduler only, is asked to email CUSTOMERSERVICEDL@dps.texas.gov and include details of their original appointment (including date, time and office location) as well as their name and preferred DL office for rebooking. They will be contacted for priority rebooking.”

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