HONOLULU — To address the long wait times faced by driver's license applicants, the city's Driver Licensing Branch has announced the launch of an express road test service, according to a news release. Starting on July 10, the new service will be available at the Kapahulu Road Test Express Office at 1112 Kapahulu Ave, home to the city's Motor Vehicle Control Branch.

What You Need To Know

  • Individuals who book an appointment at the Kapahulu Road Test Express Office will take their road test just one week after scheduling

  • Applicants who successfully pass the road test at the express location will still need to complete paperwork for their official Hawaii driver's license at the Sheridan Road Test Office, at 833 Piikoi St., about two miles away

  • While the Kapahulu express location currently only offers the behind-the-wheel test to assess applicants' driving abilities, plans are underway to make it a fully equipped facility for processing driver's licenses

  • To use the road test express service at Kapahulu, applicants must book an appointment online at honoluluroadtest.org

Applicants who wish to take a driver’s test on Oahu often wait four to eight weeks for an appointment. However, individuals who book an appointment at the Kapahulu Road Test Express Office will take their road test just one week after scheduling. 

Applicants who successfully pass the road test at the express location will still need to complete paperwork for their official Hawaii driver's license at the Sheridan Road Test Office, at 833 Piikoi St., about two miles away. At present, the Sheridan Road Test Office will continue to function as a full-service location.

While the Kapahulu express location currently only offers the behind-the-wheel test to assess applicants' driving abilities, plans are underway to make it a fully equipped facility for processing driver's licenses. The conversion to a REAL-ID compliant center requires the installation of security cameras and other logistical changes, which will take additional time to implement. 

Kim Hashiro, the director of the city's Department of Customer Services, which oversees more than 60,000 road tests annually across Oahu, expressed optimism about the new service. "We have determined that the temporary tradeoff is a good one as we evaluate whether the road test express location can help us better cut down on wait times and meet public demand over the long term," Hashiro said in the news release.

To use the road test express service at Kapahulu, applicants must book an appointment online at honoluluroadtest.org. The service will be available on weekdays from 8:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., excluding holidays, on an appointment-only basis. Each day, approximately 30 appointment slots will be made available for the road test express service. Starting Wednesday at 4 p.m., appointments for the week of July 10, 2023, can be scheduled on the website.

Michelle Broder Van Dyke covers the Hawaiian Islands for Spectrum News Hawaii. Email her at michelle.brodervandyke@charter.com.