Last September, California rolled out a new program that included digital driver’s licenses. The program has been slow to be used, with only about half a million users actually accessing their digital copies. This is more than any other state has reported that similarly allows for digital driver’s licenses; however, it is still a massively small percentage of the California population. Half a million only equates to about 2% of the licensed population in the state. Likely, the reason behind most people not downloading the license has to do with the fact that they are not actually easily accessible. However, according to the California Governor, Gavin Newsom, this will soon change. Soon, an extension to the digital driver’s license program will roll out, allowing them to live on digital wallets.
Apple and Google are expected to hold the digital driver’s license on their respective iPhone and Android wallets.
Thus far, with the digital driver’s licenses, the user has been required to have the California Department of Motor Vehicles’ wallet app. This app has a single use purpose of simply just holding the digital driver’s license, which has caused many to lose interest in downloading the app and therefore downloading the digital driver’s license. To many, the digital form has not felt convenient thus far, so they have simply stayed away from it. With the upgrade that will allow the digital driver’s license to be added to Apple and Google wallets, state officials and the DMV expect more downloads of the digital card.
The only delay at this point is a software update from Google and Apple.
In order to allow the digital card to live in the predownloaded wallet on your device, Google and Apple have to update their software so it aligns with the DMV standards. Once this action has been done, which is seemingly in the works for both companies, without an end date assigned, the digital card will be accessible to all driver’s in a far more convenient way. The only remaining issue that may deter people from still using the card is the fact that there are only a few places in which you can use this version of your driver’s license.
According to the Transportation Security Administration, only three airports currently accept the mobile license.
Los Angeles International Airport, San Francisco International Airport, and San José Mineta Airport are the three in which TSA will allow a digital form of identification. The good news is that TSA has announced that they will expand digital card acceptance to all California airports later this year. Furthermore, some stores and restaurants accept digital cards, primarily in Los Angeles and Sacramento. The state has implied that as the use of the digital driver’s license grows, more and more places and tasks will accept the digital card.
