Readers Sound Off About 'Nightmares' at Essex MVA

State statistics proved what many Essex-Middle River residents knew for years: the Essex branch of the Motor Vehicle Administration is the slowest in the state.

According to The Baltimore Sun, data posted online under Gov. Martin O’Malley’s StateStat program, customers at the Essex MVA spend an average of 40 minutes to wait in line and complete a transaction.

By contrast, the Cumberland MVA gets customers in and out in a state best average of 12 minutes. The state average is 25.5 minutes, according to The Sun.

Several area residents took to the Essex-Middle River Facebook page to vent their frustration over service at the Essex MVA branch.

“Who doesn’t have horror stories from the Essex MVA?” said Chase resident Vivian Kerner.

Essex native Jodie Hogan took her complaints even further and said she prefers using the Parkville express branch when possible.  She said the Essex branch is “terrible” with the wait being too long and believes workers there are rude.

Hogan added that she avoids going to the Essex branch if at all possible.

“[The] Parkville express office is so nice,” Hogan posted on Facebook. “I was in and out in about 20 minutes to renew my license. I highly suggest going there instead of the Essex office.”

Another patron of the Essex branch, Deborah Dexter Freeman, said going to the Essex branch “a nightmare.”

“Last time I went in there, it was an hour wait just to turn in tags,” she wrote. “If you just drop them off, you never know when you'll get your receipt to cancel your insurance.”

Maryland motor vehicle administrator John T. Kuo told The Sun he blames the Essex branch’s small size (10,000 square feet) for the problem. He also is encouraging people to utilize the MVA’s website rather than coming to the branch in person when possible.