BMV Boss: Problem-Ridden Upgrade Needed Delay

INDIANAPOLIS -- Bureau of Motor Vehicles commissioner Joel Silverman admitted Wednesday the he wouldn't have ordered a switch to a new computer system that has been plagued with problems had he known the extent of those problems.

Wednesday was three weeks to the day since the BMV launched a new computer system that has left thousands of Hoosiers frustrated over the inability to perform simple license transactions.

The problems mounted as lines grew and frustration boiled inside license branches over the past three weeks, 6News' Norman Cox reported.

Silverman insisted that the remaining problems will be fixed, but also admitted that he doesn't know what has gone wrong.

Driver records and license reinstatements are still not working properly, but Silverman said he think the agency is getting closer to fixing the issues.

"We keep fixing identified problems, and we test it. It tests OK in our test lab, but when we put it in production, it doesn't seem to work," Silverman said. "If we knew why, we could get it fixed."

Sheri Suttles, of Bloomington, said the BMV has made her attempt to buy a car from a friend a nightmare. The friend needed a duplicate title, which she said the Bloomington license branch can't produce, despite numerous time-consuming, maddening trips.

"They tell us to go in. We go in (and they say) 'Oh, sorry, we got computer problems. Computers are down. Come back in an hour,'" Settles said. "We go back in an hour --nothing. 'Well, call us the next day.' We call, they say, 'Yeah, part of it's up. Come on in and take your chances, but we can't guarantee anything.'"

Settles said the repeated trips have angered her, particularly because no one seems to know how to fix the issues.

"I am so freaking mad. It is not our fault, and it's not fair. I'm sorry they've got computer problems, but fix it. Get some more people," Settles said.

Silverman said the bureau's software vendor, Qwest, has one person working on the biggest problems. The commissioner said more people wouldn't help, because bringing in people who are unfamiliar with the software would cause more problems.

Silverman denied that he was told the new $32 million system wouldn't work.

"We definitely thought it was in well enough shape to put this in without any problem," Silverman said.

When asked if he would have implemented the computer upgrade if he'd known the issues that would arise, Silverman said, "No, I wouldn't have."

Self-service terminals, which have been inoperable since the upgrade, might be running again soon. Technicians successfully got one of them to work on Wednesday. All of the terminals could be up again by the weekend.