May 20, 2004 – In an effort catch-up on the large backlog of motor vehicle registrations that need processing the Motor Vehicle Bureau on St. Thomas will be open on Saturdays starting this week.
In a release Thursday night, Deputy Police Commissioner James McCall said the bureau will be open Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. "until further notice."
Relentless rain in November caused flooding at the bureau office in Sub Base, which destroyed computers and vehicle records. The office was closed for four months offering only limited services during that time. When it reopened Lawrence Olive, bureau director, said he expected 6,000 people to show up to register vehicles.
A lot of them did and the lines have been long and often people have had to leave without getting their business completed.
In an effort to quell complaints and rising tempers, the bureau implemented a drop-box system in April.
However, a month later, according to Olive, only 27 or 28 applications were acceptable out of 1,500 that had been mailed in because people had not gotten their existing registrations checked against outstanding liens and tickets before submitting the paperwork for renewal. (See MVB Office Open; Mail-in, Drop-off Problem Cited)
The Saturday hours are not going to solve that particular problem. McCall said only motorists who were already given a number for registration pick-up can use the Saturday services. People whose vehicles have not yet been inspected or who don't have a clearance from the Territorial Court for traffic tickets can still only be processed Monday through Friday.
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