(Radio Iowa) – The implementation of the Real I-D driver’s license requirement for flying led to record numbers of people visiting D-O-T driver’s license offices. D-O-T Motor Vehicles Division director Kathleen Meradith-Eyers says traffic picked up as the May 7th deadline approached.”Starting with a 20 percent increase in April, early April, then 30 percent, then 40 percent. And this past week we issued 56 percent more cards across the state than normal,” she says.

Meradith-Eyers says the total impact of the Real I-D rush nearly doubled the visits they normally see. “All combined in the last two months, our overall volume and issuance has increased 49 percent,” she says. “We believe a significant amount of media coverage has contributed to this rush and this increased interest.” She says they made adjustments to meet the demand. “We have expanded service center hours. We’ve opened early and we’ve stayed late. We have worked overtime and we’ve shifted staff across the state to our high demand location to ensure that service is available to Iowans,” Meradith-Eyers.

Meradith-Eyers says driver’s license appointments wait times have taken longer to get, but they expect that to ease up. “In the mornings, our average appointment lead time is two to five days, and by the afternoon, our statewide lead time can be ten to 14 days,” she says.

You now need a Real ID driver’s license with a yellow star to use it to board a plane. (DOT photo)

“This shows that demand remains elevated, and we do expect things to level out to normal volumes around the end of May and early June.” Meradith-Eyers says 76 percent of Iowa license holders had already switched to Real I-D before the deadline, and that made things go smoothly as the requirement went into place.

“Since May 7th, T-S-A reported that over 33-thousand passengers were screened at the Des Moines and Cedar Rapids Airport. And of those, only one-and-a-half percent of passengers had a non-compliant I-D. So this amounts to less than 500 passengers total,” she says.

Meradith-Eyers says the national average for Real I-D sign up was around 60 percent heading into the deadline.