The Ada County Driver's License Office on Benjamin Lane in Boise will introduce Idaho's the new central-issue driver's license system beginning Monday (May 23), becoming the second pilot location in the state. The Payette County Driver's License Office in Payette was the first.

For customers who plan to renew licenses at this location during the pilot phase, ITD offers two reminders:

• Monday is typically the busiest day of the week at the DMV
• Consider coming later in the week, unless it is critical to apply for or renew a license or ID card on Monday

The first pilot program in Payette County was designed for an office where lower daily volumes of licenses and ID cards would allow testing of the system on a smaller scale. Starting Monday, ITD will graduate its testing to a larger scale (Ada County), before statewide implementation.

By summer, the new licenses and ID cards will be available at all other 51 county offices.

The updated system will incorporate security features that, together, are nearly impossible to counterfeit. The switch also means cards will be issued from a central, secure location instead of at individual county offices.

With the new process, people will not leave the county licensing office with a plastic card anymore, says Susan Romero, Ada County Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) Driver's License Supervisor.

Instead, applicants leave with a temporary paper document, which is valid for 30 days. The new plastic license or ID card will be produced at a central production facility and mailed to the customer within about 10 business days. Because it is mailed, it will be necessary for applicants to provide a correct address.

The temporary card is issued for driving and identity purposes until the new plastic card arrives by mail. The temporary card includes a photo, the same information that appears on the plastic card (such as name, address, date of birth, height and weight), and a machine readable bar code containing that information.

For more information, contact ITD's Driver Services office at (208) 334-8000 or visit http://itd.idaho.gov/dmv/centralissuance.htm on ITD's website.

Published 5-20-2011