NC DMV

Horrible.
Look, we’re talking about the DMV here. No one expects great service or even a pleasant experience. But this place is like the 3^rd circle of hell. Arrived at about 11 am on a Tuesday morning to get a driver’s license. Had all the necessary documentation, plus a valid out-​of-​state license. Ended up waiting upwards of 2 hours to complete a 10-​minute process. The wait alone was absurd, but the staff are very rude as well.
I’ve lived in 4 different states in the past decade, and never waited more than 30 – 40 minutes at the comparable agencies in the other three states. This location is badly understaffed and those who do work here are very inefficient. The gentleman running the check-​in/​triage was incredibly rude to many guests — literally to the point of directing insults at people.
Just avoid this place if you can.

This is an excellent DMV. The staff is courteous, helpful and kind. The wait wasn’t too bad at 9am, took about an hour from start to finish to get my license renewed.

The NC DMV could use more seats, at least 10 people standing at all times. Not too fun but the staff seems to enjoy being there. When you Walk in, go straight to the desk in front. The guy will ask you for your papers to be sure you’re ready when you hear your numbers called.
When I was called, I met with the senior license employee who was complaining about everything! While reading my papers and license he was using a magnifying glass, which I found odd. When I was asked to do the visual testing, the letters were very blurry which failed me resulting in me being handed a paper saying I’d need an eye exam from a professional. This I had done and cost me $ 120 only to have them say my vision was fine and that I should have passed at the DMV no problem… Turns out the DMV test gear is not calibrated properly and old…
The line also took me 1 hour, 10 minutes to get through, very long compared to other offices!
End result? I spent the full day dealing with the DMV but got my licence and plates.

On this last birthday season, it fell upon that time to renew the ol’ driver’s license. Ack. I chose the NC DMV location on Maynard Rd in Cary for my renewal. As this process is usually one that people generally do not look forward to, I was anxious to be done with it.
The location is one where you need to keep your eyes peeled to find it off the road in a side strip office park area… it really doesn’t stand out a lot. Once inside, there is a central desk just in the middle of the room, you have to assume to queue up here and get a place in line/​assigned a number to be called. Be sure to have all your documents in hand and ready to show, they are very precise on what is to be in hand when you come there for business. Once assigned a number, my wait and processing at the examiner was done in a pretty reasonable time, sooner than I had expected actually. Then you are sent across to the other side of the room to wait for your picture. This flow is not set up very well as where to queue up and wait etc. This flow matches the general nebulous start at the desk, and it gets that there is just a general crowd of people if it starts getting backed up instead of a solid line. The same person mans the desk at the start of the process as the photo area so there tends to be a backup at this point, as this person runs back and forth depending on which area is backed up the most. Once in the chair for your photo, you are processed quickly, they print out your 20 day temp license (they must mail your permanent license now as it has the info chip engrained in it for travel/​security purposes) and you are good to go. The staff themselves are all business but courteous and respectful, no complaints. All in all, not too bad if the setup flowed better and had adequate staffing.
Bottom line: I’d actually go with 3.5 stars on NC DMV here but it doesn’t make the 4 star mark. Workflow and how each part is set up is not very smooth but actually didn’t take as much time as anticipated to get my license renewed. As disconnected as the pieces may be, it worked.

Great customer service. I was in and out in 30 minutes. They even have a printer you can use in case you forget some documents. Front desk staff was very friendly and cooperative.
I would have given 5 stars if they accepted credit cards.

Came here yesterday and had to come back today to provide additional documents. Stat of the art customer service from front desk personnel especially window #1 which served me and my wife. I am sure all other staff are great in this location. Thank you for make it a smooth and pleasant experience :)

Long Wait.
Came in on a Wednesday at 9:30AM. The waiting area was full. Waited an hour and they had only served 10 additional numbers. I was easily 2 hours from being served, so I left. These guys have a lot to learn about efficiency.

I went on a Wednesday morning around 9am and there were only two other people sitting in the waiting area. You are first greeted by someone asking what you are there for and then you go to the computer to get a number. Right after I got my number and sat down, my number was called! I was moving from out of state and needed a new license. I showed her my valid state license, passport, proof of NC insurance, and my lease for proof of address. She did all of the paperwork for me, then we went through a vision test and sign test, then paid the $ 32 license fee, took my picture, and was out of there! It was one of the quickest DMV experiences I have ever had.

If you live in the Cary area– go to Fuquay for your drivers license! They are smaller but so friendly and nice!
For license plates go to the South Hills location. It is off Buck Jones, kinda underneath the Burlington Coat Factory. It is smaller but quick and efficient. They also do temporary handicap hangers. Beats going downtown any day!

Ain’t no body got time for that… unless you happen to need your license, and you live in Cary and this is the closest place. Sigh.
Location 3 out of 5: I get that Cary is actually fairly spread out, but sheesh, it took me a whole 15 minutes to get here. I might as well have been going to Fuquay Varina! Kidding of course. This location is in an little office complex off of Maynard not too far away from Cary Towne Center. I guess if you get bored and can calculate the expected wait time for a license, you can always scuttle off there for a bit.
Décor and Amenities: 2 out of 5
Typical government office establishment. Sterile, almost dinghy looking, with that smell and taste in the air of «Je né sais quoi!» A mix of humid drywall and ceiling, a mix of BO, but oh so memorable in a non-​complimentary way. No free coffee or water for you here, though there is free wifi (you have to register and renew every 20 minutes or so). Hooray…
Customer service (not to be confused with efficiency): 4 out of 5
The man at the front who greets you and asks what you need done is very nice. He’ll even let you use the printer if you need to print out your proof of insurance. Even the man that helped me with my vision and road signs test (I just needed an NC license) and all my paperwork was extremely friendly and dare I say, even outgoing and amicable?! Indeed he was!
Efficiency: 1 out of 5, i.e., one of the circles of hell, i.e., compounded by people on both ends.
From the customer service standpoint, it’s difficult to watch the man at the front (greeter) also play the man taking photos for the licenses. This naturally causes a bottleneck, and it’s not HIS fault that there’s only one of him. It’s just that he can only take so many photos or help so many people before the other queue forms. While I understand that the other reps are doing their best to be thorough, they seemed to move in slow motion. You don’t notice it as much when you’re the one being helped (because your own needs being served outweighs this), but as I watched the same guy who helped me help others, I saw that he typed ever so timidly, and that indeed — he just worked sorta/​kinda slowly. Not in a mean way like he’s simple or stupid, but maybe that’s just the way that he works. Again, this is not a reflection of his work ethic because in the several hours I waited, I saw him get up ONCE to use the bathroom and that was it.
Other customers also contribute to the problem. Between not having all of their materials ready to misplacing those materials to having to find them again when they get to the actual service rep… ai chihuahua, it’s a cluster.
Overall: 3 out of 5
I think had I planned it better, I would have gone earlier in the middle of the week. Still though, this is a necessary service, and the people who helped me were actually quite friendly, if a tad bit slow. Be prepared to wait, and be smart about the time/​day you go. I went on a Tuesday at around 10am, and my wait was approximately 1hr45min start to finish for just my temporary license. To put that in perspective, when I was in Wisconsin, I was in and out in 20 minutes with permanent license, registration, AND title at one of the main processing facilities in Milwaukee. As others have mentioned, this facility processes licenses only (new license, duplicate, road test, etc.) and you must go elsewhere for your tags and title.

Note: there are NO tag and title services here, you’ll find that at the South Hills Mall 7 mins drive away. I like the office and the people are nice.

If you arrive at 7:45am, you can expect a line of at least 10 people already in front of the door (outside). At 8:01am they finally opened the doors and our line moved inside, wrapping around the lobby.
The lady at the front was friendly with some people (men), but unfriendly with most (other women). She failed to scold the foreigner who left his insurance in his vehicle (sweetly asking him to go fetch it and wait off to the side), but reprimanded the lady in front of me for not having her papers out immediately (they were in her bag). She was short and tart with me, but was super friendly with the middle-​aged man behind me. *shrug*
I waited no longer than five minutes in one of the seats before my number was called by a robotic lady on the intercom. Luckily, there were four stations working (cubicles). The next lady who gave me my license renewal test was a lot nicer and on top of her game. Ten minutes later, I walked away with my license renewed and my photo taken. Unfortunately, the check-​in lady took my photo and her semi-​foul mood had not dissipated. She left me with a 20-​day driving pass with my information (for my new license), telling me to make sure everything was correct before I left. Before I could glance over it and respond, she was back at her check-​in station. I tried making eye contact with her, since I wasn’t sure if I could leave yet (she hadn’t told me I was «done»). However, she ignored me – so I left.
When all was said and done, it was 8:25am. Not bad, Cary DMV, not bad.
My advice to you: Come early, have all of your documents in hand when you’re in line, and try not to take any of the people’s bad attitudes personally.