Effective Wednesday, December 9, 2009, all Division of Motor Vehicles (DMV) locations will be closed to the public each Wednesday, through February 17, 2010, for staff training on a new, statewide DMV computer system.
When online, the new system, dubbed RIMS, will be a complete upgrade of all DMV computer hardware and software, providing a single database linking all transactions throughout the DMV branch system. In addition, RIMS will integrate all existing DMV driver information databases and allow for credit card transactions.
Wednesday was chosen because it is the day of the week with the least amount of transactions processed across all offices. To accommodate the training schedule, DMV branch locations in Woonsocket and Wakefield will change their days of operation (see attached sheet for days and hours of operation).
Road exams will continue to be offered each weekday, including Wednesdays, from the DMV’s main office in Pawtucket, and the DMV safety and emissions garage (Melrose St., Providence) will remain open Monday to Friday. In addition, the public will be able to process transactions on-line at www.dmv.ri.gov, at local AAA offices, and through the mail.
“We believe it is prudent to close the registry to the public one day a week for staff training on the new system,” said Sally Strachan, DMV Administrator. “By allowing the registry to close this one day per week, we will be able to forge the RIMS project back on schedule and, when up and running, provide a greater level of customer service to the public.”
Please visit the website at www.dmv.ri.gov for hours of operations and other useful information.