Motor Vehicle Administration

I hate this place. I’ve been waiting here for OVER AN HOUR just to return tags. It’s not event that busy!

wish i could give them 0 stars. horrible phone and in-​person customer service!!! incompetency starts here!!!

4+ hours and counting. Anything that «requires a supervisor» means that you are going to be stuck in a seemingly endless cycle of waiting.
I was just issued my license last week. I came in today to have my veteran’s status added to my license. For some reason that’s taking over 4 hours and multiple calls to Glen Burnie to verify something that they refuse to share with me.
Alas, this DMV has become Glen Burnie south in terms of service.

This was the fastest MVA /​DMV visit, ever! In at 4:10 and out by 4:25. I never thought I’d say that.
Maybe coming on a weekday at almost closing time was the greatest idea, ever!

5 Stars for Jemika. We just worked with her for our registration. Her attention to detail, intelligence, and knowledge of the mva processes allowed us to register our vehicle appropriately. She is very quick with numbers and is clearly a problem solver. This is important feedback because our situation was a bit complicated. Great job. Great representative for Maryland! It’s always promising to meet a government employee who cares about the quality of her work. Thanks!

I’m retired. So, coming over to MVA will only happen in the middle of the week where this place should have smaller waits. This is my preferred MVA office. My last three visits have been pleasant. First of all, they have two entrances, one for licenses and one for plates/​registration. Even though they come into the same room, you are directed to the correct desk that assigns you a number. There are plenty of benches, so the days of waiting in a long line have been transformed into a comfortable sitting area. They have multiple displays and announce which number is next. It also displays the que, just in case you missed your number. Very efficient and my waits have been reasonable. Once I got to the counter, the exchange was pleasant and efficient. For us old timers who stood in lines for hours and was treated grumpily, this system is so much better and professional. Thanks you MVA. Keep up the good work.

I have been to a couple mva for various driver license related issues and this one is better than most.
They have ample amount of seating and a good size parking lot. I would NOT recommend coming on Monday or Saturday.

These people are terrible!
All I wanted to [do was change me name… why did it take 5hours! I will tell you why… because 1. the people at the welcome desk are not knowledgeable enough to know where you should be going to get what you need done! 2. the people actually doing the change are overworked and end up making mistakes. 3. No one wants to ask the right person (a supervisor) to get you where you need to be.
I honestly feel like I left that place 10xs dumber than when I went in. I am just glad it is over! I will definitely be going to the Glen Burnie branch next time. Though the lines are long, at least you will get what you need done without the bouncing back and forth because of incompetence!

My go to MVA location! People are helpful and don’t act like you’re a pain in their butt when you have a question. I’ve been to the Largo, Beltsville and Gaithersburg locations and none of them touch this one. Even though it’s smaller in size, I like how you can usually get in and get out quickly.
I almost wanted to keep how efficient this place is a secret but it seems like the gig is up. The last two times I went the wait was a little longer than usual, although that could have been because it was a Friday afternoon. I will continue to come from Bowie to this location, keep up the good work!
Perhaps one pet peeve I have is they seem to always have some kind of protestor or table set up outside borderline harassing people and signing up for the ’cause’. Um excuse me I just want to renew my registration, please don’t get in my way…

Out of all the MVA locations in the area (Largo, Beltsville, Glen Burnie), Annapolis stands out as the best! It is fast in and out! Love this location! The staff are friendly most of the time and the location is clean, bright and open!
The parking lot is spacious and as I stated, you can get in and get out! I have only had to renew my license and registration here, so no real issues here!
My go to MVA location, by far!

Location, Location, Location: So the same rules for real estate apply to essential government services as well. The Annapolis MVA is a top notch version of the MVA experience. A big private parking lot, big open attractive building, clean, good happy, well dressed employees. This location serves the «hoity poity» and you can tell. You can look at the makes/​models of cars in the spacious parking lot. The patrons inside are just a sleek and well turned out. There was no one in pajama bottoms, no hair rollers under shower caps, no neck tattoos and baggy pants. I saw at least five trophy wives and several «originals» that were easily holding their own.
The MVA is the great «leveler» experience; almost everyone has to come in there eventually. The workers are happy and polite. The examiner’s are helpful, happy and polite (my daughter was taking her second attempt at driver’s license road test). Show up here like the «natives», well dressed, clean and with all of your papers in order (like «they» do) and you will have a great MVA experience. We did! Review complete.
Social Commentary Begins:
One of the first times that I can remember my late father (born 1930) crying was when he came to visit me at Old Dominion University. I took him to our (at that time) brand new baseball facility. I worked for the athletic department so we were able to get «the tour», he saw the locker rooms, the press box, walked out onto the field etc. He had played segregated baseball in the Army in 1954. He had been a pretty good player, everyone told me that through the years. He had then gone to Virginia State College (an HBSC). So he was running his hands across the grass near first base and when he looked up into the stands, tears were rolling down his face. Although I was uncomfortable, to say the least, I asked him what was wrong. He said (I am of course paraphrasing from memory) «we didn’t have any nice fields to play on, separate but equal was a cruel joke».
So having labored through that story, you might wonder why I bring it up in discussing the MVA. My daughter took her first test at the Essex MVA. It sits in the corner of a run down strip mall. The testing facility is cramped. The patrons there are mostly «marginally legal» immigrants, poor whites and semi-​scary blacks. Accordingly the staff is stressed, angry, not terribly happy to be there and (not their fault) it comes across in their dress, tone and manner.
As we were driving home I couldn’t help but think back to that incident with my father. My daughter and I had just experienced a modern version of «separate but equal». My salary and mobility allowed us access to the life of the «other» in Annapolis. I am not saying that she failed at Essex a couple of months ago because of the staff or run down crpmped testing facility. [We practiced differently and more seriously after that attempt]. There was however a much different vibe and much different «opportunity» presented to her in Annapolis (State Capitol) than had been the case in Essex (backwater in decline).
If the disparity in MVA locations is that marked, is there really any wonder why the schools have the variance in outcome that they do.