You can still apply for driver’s licence despite card machine not working, says transport department

The driver’s licence card printing machine breakdown will not affect production of licence cards.

The printing machine broke down again this week and will be back in service in about three weeks. The department encouraged the public to apply for their driving licence card as normal.

“The department reassures members of the public the production of driving licence cards will not be affected by the routine maintenance of the card production machine,” it said.

The DA said the licence card printing process must be decentralised, saying it will reduce turnaround time for new driving licences.

“By devolving this process to provincial authorities, we can expedite service delivery and create a buffer against national blackouts when the printing service is unavailable,” said the party.

“In light of the ongoing issues surrounding the driving licence card machine and the department’s continued mismanagement, the DA reiterates our call for each province to independently produce the service.

“A practical and risk-mitigating solution would involve providing each province with its own machine, ensuring sufficient backup in case of future breakdowns. This approach is consistent with our previous recommendations and would improve overall service delivery and responsiveness to citizens, despite the department’s consistent failures.”

Previously, former transport minister Fikile Mbalula said the machine’s earlier breakdown was linked to the ongoing power cuts.

Asked at the time if there were strategies to keep the machine running during load-shedding, Mbalula said the department has backup systems.

“There are backup uninterrupted power supply systems that kick in when there are power cuts. The interruption occurred due to the backup system power surge which has been addressed.”

Mbalula said a new-generation “smart” driver’s licence card will be rolled out from October.

The current card would be phased out over five years.

This was after the issuing backlog was worsened by the printing machine breaking down. It was sent to Germany for repairs.

Mbalula said the 2.1-million backlog in issuing driving licences would be cleared by September last year.

“I am pleased to announce cabinet has approved the replacement of the driving licence card with a new card with more secure design features. It will comply with the international driving licence standard.

“The current card was introduced in 1998 and the production equipment was procured in the same year. The technology has become obsolete,” Mbalula said at the time.

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