The North Dakota Department of Transportation will be upgrading its computer systems in May.
And that means for a few days. North Dakotans will have limited driver’s license and motor vehicle services. All motor vehicle offices will be closed for in-person services from May 5th through the 8th. Drivers License offices will be closed May 6th to the 8th. And online services – including kiosks – will not be available from May 4th through the 8th.
"Currently, the motor vehicle system is a fast product," said DOT deputy director for driver safety Robin Rehborg. "We've had that since 2015-2016."
Rehborg said the driver's license system is an older, legacy system, on the mainframe.
"So what we're going to do is combine them in the background," Rehborg said. "It'll just be one system."
Rehborg said once the combined system is up and running, people will notice a few differences in driver's licenses.
"For instance, you will be able to fill out your driver's license application before you even go to your appointment," Rehborg said. "Now you walk in, you take the piece of paper, you fill out the application, and you take that up with you to the desk."
Rehborg said on the motor vehicle side, customers won’t see much change.
"But it will streamline the system," Rehborg said. "Hopefully, it will be faster."
