By Abrar Al-Heeti
With each day that the Champaign driver services facility remains closed without news of a re-opening date, the patience of some area residents continues to dwindle.
The driver services facility formerly located at 2401 W. Bradley Avenue has been closed since Nov. 9 following complaints about the air quality and overcrowding.
Drivers who need services have been going to other towns, including Rantoul, Tuscola, Monticello and Gibson City.
Henry Haupt, deputy press secretary for Illinois Secretary of State Jesse White, said no date has been set for reopening. However, he added, the search for a new facility is nearing its final stages.
“We have been aggressively searching for a new permanent facility,” Haupt said. “We initially cast a wide net to look at a number of potential locations throughout Champaign that would best serve the citizens of Champaign as well as the surrounding communities, and we have been narrowing that down. We are at a point where we are definitely nearing the finish line in terms of choosing the final permanent facility, which should be much larger than the past one on Bradley.”
Haupt said he was unable to disclose the list of potential locations.
Jay Huffman, driver education teacher at Centennial High School, said the facility’s closing has been an inconvenience for students who want to get their licenses, as well as for teachers who need to pick up certain materials, including permit applications, for the class.
“I’ve had to make new arrangements to go to Rantoul and get (documents) there,” Huffman said. “It’s a little bit longer of a drive for me to go over there and take care of getting that information from them.”
Huffman said the driver education instructors let their students know that if they’re planning to get their driver’s licenses, they’ll need to pick a different location.
“I’m sure it’s been a hassle for students as well because they’ve either had to go to Monticello, Rantoul or Gibson City. I’m sure it’s a little bit of an inconvenience for folks to take care of business there; I know it has been for us.”
There is still one option remaining in C-U. The state has been running a mobile unit at the University of Illinois for eight years where patrons can go for most driver’s services, including driver’s license renewals and written and vision tests. The mobile unit is in room 407 of the Illini Union once a month during school semesters from 9:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. The 2015 dates are Feb. 25, March 20 and April 29.
“We can provide virtually all services there that we could in any driver services facility,” Haupt said. “It’s a great way to bring our services to the people of the University of Illinois and for added convenience. You’re also dealing with a population (in which) many … may not actually have cars at their ready disposal.”