Thanks to the time-saving new Road Traffic Management Cooperation (RTMC) driver’s license renewal system, motorists will no longer have to wait in huge lines to renew their driver’s licenses.
This technique significantly reduces the time required to apply for a new or temporary driver’s license. Additionally, it simplifies the application procedure to about 10 minutes. We are now now able to check the applicant’s identification with Home Affairs, which helps prevent identity fraud, according to Sydney Mogaecho, general manager of law enforcement for the RTMC.
He explained that the new approach has been implemented at all Gauteng Driver’s Licence Testing Centres, including the Eco Park in Centurion and the Waterfall Office Park in Midrand.
Since the start of the new system in October 2021, around 176 000 licenses have been handled.
Additionally, the Post Office encourages drivers to skip the line by renewing their licenses online.
Plans are in place to expand the system to other sections of Gauteng, and then to KwaZulu-Natal, the Free State, the Western Cape, the Northern Cape, Limpopo, and Mpumalanga. The approach will eventually be implemented nationwide.
He explained that the technology was implemented to improve driver’s license center services.
“License centers are notorious for long lines and uncaring employees; the new system is designed to eliminate these issues and introduce efficiency and courteous service,” he stated.
Mogaecho said that the first step in renewing your driver’s license is to schedule an appointment through the National Traffic Information Portal’s (NaTIS) online system and select a convenient date.
This will be followed by a visit to a testing center where, upon arrival, drivers will be required to present identification documents and undergo fingerprint verification. The process of verification is linked to the Department of Home Affairs, which checks the applicant’s information.
The motorists are then assisted with an eye exam and asked to pay with a credit card. Cash transactions are not permitted.
“The system is available to all applicants for a driver’s license or temporary driver’s license at our centers,” he said.
Themba Hlongwane, a satisfied motorist who recently visited the RTMC headquarters at Centurion Centre, was pleased with the service he received.
“I’m impressed with the new system, everything went smoothly, and I didn’t have to take any time off,” he added.
The Gauteng Department of Roads and Transport (GDRT) inaugurated a first-of-its-kind, intelligent DLTC at the Gautrain Midrand station in June 2022.
The centre is one of four new stations that will be constructed by the GDRT in partnership with the Gautrain Management Agency (GMA) and the RTMC to alleviate license renewal backlogs in the Gauteng region.
The new centre will include services such as driver’s license applications and renewals, interim driver’s license issuance, and payment of traffic penalties.
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