TRENTON — The state Motor Vehicle Commission, which has closed or consolidated 14 locations over the last four years and is shuttering three more Saturday, is seeking bids from vendors to evaluate its remaining 62 sites and suggest how many should stay open. The deadline for bids is 2 p.m. Friday. A "request for proposal" issued on behalf of...
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Motor vehicle inspections stations in Westfield, Delanco and Bridgeton are going to close — like this one in Flemington.TRENTON — The state Motor Vehicle Commission, which has closed or consolidated 14 locations over the last four years and is shuttering three more Saturday, is seeking bids from vendors to evaluate its remaining 62 sites and suggest how many should stay open.
The deadline for bids is 2 p.m. Friday.
A "request for proposal" issued on behalf of the MVC seeks a detailed analysis of all agency offices and inspection stations.
The purpose, according to information in the request, is to "determine the number of facilities needed and the services that should be provide(d) based on demographics, new technologies and fiscal factors."
The agency noted it was "actively seeking to reduce costs generated by the high number of statewide locations."
In addition, the winning vendor is to examine the impact of new technology — including an automated vehicle transaction system scheduled for 2013, a digital drivers license with enhanced security features and a driver testing system — on the MVC.
After the MVC was reorganized from the Division of Motor Vehicles in 2003, a consulting firm recommended changes, additions and deletions to agency facilities over the next five years.
MVC spokesman Mike Horan said the 2004 site study needs to be updated, so the agency is seeking a vendor to take another look at the MVC’s portfolio.
"That doesn’t necessarily mean we’re looking to close agencies," he said. "This helps us formulate our strategic plan moving forward."
Over the past four years, the MVC has closed locations in Bridgeton, Elizabeth, Englewood, Irvington, Montclair, Morristown, Newton, Ridgewood, Wayne and Wyckoff, and consolidated sites in East Brunswick, Flemington, Freehold and Randolph.
On Saturday, low-volume inspection stations in Bridgeton, Delanco and Westfield are scheduled to close. Bridgeton and Westfield are appointment-only locations; the Westfield station is in Union County, which has two other inspection stations.
Inspection workers in Delanco and Bridgeton held rallies last month protesting the closings, which are likely to lead to layoffs.
With fewer locations, complaints about longer lines have been increasing.
Nancy Gleason of Westfield tried to get her license renewed last month at the Springfield MVC office. She said she waited in a long line and finally made it through the document check section an hour later.
Gleason said she was one seat away from getting her paperwork taken care of when the office manager told her and the others who were waiting to leave and come back the next day.
"The (MVC) needs a real overhaul and it needs to run like a real business," Gleason said.
In February, customers who went to MVC offices in Springfield, Wayne and Toms River had their visits interrupted by computer problems.
Staff writer Ginger Gibson contributed to this report.