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Utah
Driver License Di-Vision
“DO YOU WANT A CALLOUS STATE GOVERNMENT?”
State of Utah uses faulty equipment and inhospitable clerks
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“DO YOU WANT A CALLOUS STATE GOVERNMENT?”
State of Utah uses faulty equipment and inhospitable clerks
The Short Of It
The Drivers license clerk behind the window saw that my wife is not a native English speaker -- English is her third language (Cantonese & Mandarin preceded). Then he helped her flunk the vision test.
QUICK READ
You're a victim. You are powerless and you don't count. Except to foot the bill as a taxpayer.
There's nothing you can do about it... Well, you could make a web page like this one...
This is what happened
The vision testing machine at the Department of public Safety displays one field for the left eye, one for the right eye and a stereo-synthesized, overlapping field for both eyes. It takes a bit of time and practice to see what you're supposed to see. The clerk was "un-helpful"; he made short shrift. Without a word, he flung a form, to be completed by an eye doctor, onto the counter. This was to be presented upon a subsequent return to the drivers license office, as a second-chance redemption of her visual acuity.
The next day we returned after having my wife's eyes examined by a doctor; but this time we went to another drivers license station in our city -- and she quickly obtained her drivers license.
My wife's vision was OK after all, according to the optometrist.
Elmer Haysied, 77, has his retina examined
during a checkup in Boston. Associated PressAt this new Drivers license station, this clerk was quite helpful. He was a young man who had worked for the Utah Department of public Safety for only about 2-1/2 years. He was not burned out yet, like the older career public servant at the first Drivers license station we visited.
I asked him for his estimate of how many applicants obtain a FALSE POSITIVE diagnosis like my wife. Te thought that there were about "two people a week" to whom this happens. He volunteered that on a busy day at his Drivers license station -- the second office we visited -- processes about 1000 applicants. He said by the time we had been there (about 4:pm on Tue, April 21, 2009), about 600 people had been serviced.
I asked if he thought that perhaps the problem we encountered, being rejected by the vision machine -- if this problem might occur more often with applicants who are not fluent in English, and the quickly clerk concurred.
So, this is the nature of the problem.
It turns out that we had to visit a doctor and have an expensive eye exam. This, I think, because of the first clerk's impatience and slipshod slovenly attitude. The vision testing machines at the Utah Department of Public safety's Driver License Division are probably poorly designed and ineffective. Utah ought to release an FRP to replace them statewide -- it's worth an investigation.
Driver License Division
4501 South 2700 West
Salt Lake City, UT 84114
801 / 965-4437
Contact Driver License Division
Emails received will be posted here. Replies / rebuttals are accepted, but you must give name and email address.
Date: Wed, 22 Apr 2009 15:03:41 -0600
From: "dpscontact" <dpscontact@utah.gov>
To: <nowscape@yahoo.com>
Subject: Re: DLD Feedback (DPS Web Auto Responce)
X-GWPos: 15666605-15666729Your comments and/or questions are important to us. It helps us better understand how we can improve our services. Your inquiries will be forwarded via Email to the person who can best address your question or comments. In most cases you should receive a response within 1-3 working days.
Date: Wed, 22 Apr 2009 16:28:10 -0600
From: "Wally Wintle" <wallywintle@utah.gov>
To: <nowscape@yahoo.com>
Cc: "Joanne Munson" <JMUNSON@utah.gov>
I would be more than happy to investigate your claims, if you will tell me what office you went to, when you were there, and who helped you [sic].
Date: Wed, 22 Apr 2009 18:21
To: "Wally Wintle" <wallywintle@utah.gov>
Subject: Re: Constituent concern
Thank you very much, Wally. As I mentioned, [nobody actually helped us -- the opposite, hindrance obtained]. I went to two (2) driver license offices on consecutive days. The first office, the office with the problem, was the one on the state fairgrounds. That was on Monday, April 20th 2009. I don't remember the name of the gentleman behind the window-- he did not introduce himself to us; but I remember we had the waiting-ticket #100 that afternoon, perhaps 4:pm.
I hope that helps. Thanks kindly in advance for your reply.
This machine tries to accomplish a plethora of things, much more than the simple vision check inten-ded -- and it fails in its accuracy. A simple eye chart would be better!
"The Vision Screener tests Acuity (14" & 20'), Depth Perception, Color Percep-tion, Muscle Balance (Lateral & Verti-cal Phoria), Horizontal Visual Fields (Peripheral vision of 130 degrees in each eye) in one lightweight, compact & easy-to- use instrument."
The TITMUS T2a at the Salt Lake City, UT Fairgrounds, 2009.
The hassle, the expense
It has been a real hassle and a serious expense to get this done... the doctor bill, the time off work, and all for no good reason... For your information -- I just made a return visit to that Fairgrounds office and made a photo of an example of the offending machine -- for publication on the 'Net, in pursuance of this story -- [Attached] is the picture.
The vision tester model is the TITMUS T2a. This machine, as used at the drivers license office does a worse job of testing than a simple eye chart would do-- it has an excessive number of FALSE POSITIVES. And it's an example of waste in Utah government. This ought to be looked into.
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