Digital Driver’s Licenses Take Flight in Wyoming

Last updated: 12 January 2018

Building on the momentum from successful DDL pilot launches in Colorado, Maryland, and Washington DC earlier this year, the Gemalto DDL solution was recently tested in Cheyenne, Wyoming. Our team headed “forever west,” to partner with the Wyoming Department of Transportation over the course of several days and expand our growing list of field-tested use cases.

The technology was deployed for the first time in simulated traffic stops involving large-scale commercial and recreational vehicles, and as part of a simulated airport check-in process. The enthusiastic responses and detailed feedback we received made Wyoming’s go-live an informative and action-packed frontier for mobile licensing!

Demoing DDLs with Wyoming Highway Patrol

Day one of Wyoming’s DDL pilot started with a bang – well, a gust of wind, or two – at WYDOT headquarters in Cheyenne, the state’s capital city.

Thanks to the hospitality of the WYDOT team, our DDL troupe set up shop in their headquarters and met with enthusiastic members of the public who were especially keen to check out the DDLs for the first time. They learned about mobile driver’s license technology on a variety of demo smartphones and saw a number of digital ID verifications performed at their very own DMV!

Pilot participants and DDL enthusiasts were also on-hand to present their newly-installed and activated Wyoming DDL pilot credentials for use at the week’s events. They got to test out the technology first-hand and offered comprehensive feedback on their initial experiences with their mobile license.

The second half of a lively pilot day one was spent outside the WYDOT facility, testing DDL technology in the field with Wyoming Highway Patrol. Dedicated law enforcement officials tested the limits of the digital solution by conducting a series of simulated traffic stops using – in addition to an array of standard passenger vehicles – a semi-truck and a recreational vehicle in tow.

The consensus was that experimenting with DDLs in the actual conditions – varying and possibly inclement weather over large distances on the side of a roadway – that highway patrol officers face every day was valuable. It illuminated key areas where DDL technology can be enhanced to be most beneficial in real-world application.

After several hours testing DDLs in the field, our team was as warmed by the response that we received from our WYDOT partners as we were by the coffee and doughnuts that rounded out day one in the Cowboy State.

Hitting New Heights at Cheyenne Regional Airport

Day two of Wyoming’s DDL pilot activity brought us to Cheyenne Regional Airport, a civil-military airport about a mile north of downtown Cheyenne, where pilot participants were invited to test out their DDLs while simulating the identity verification process for air travel.

Pilot participants lined up – luggage in tow – and walked through several airport check-in scenarios where they presented their DDL for verification instead of a physical credential.

This phase of DDL pilot activity showed how easy and secure the digital license is to use on an already-accessible mobile device – no fumbling for a loose document amid your travel gear, or accidentally arriving at the airport without your ID. In this case, airport agents were able to validate the identity of pilot participants with the click of a button, and advance the line smoothly and efficiently.

Given today’s trend in mobile boarding passes for travel, it was easy for participants to imagine a future in which mobile boarding passes and digital driver’s licenses will be integrated on your smartphone, offering a more streamlined process for traveler verification. We also heard one airport representative’s view of the potential benefits that a DDL solution could offer pilots and airline staff, who are themselves required to routinely present a valid credential for verification.

After two action-packed days of pilot activity in Wyoming, our team returned home filled with the delicious local treat that is Mort’s bagels and the sense that the next steps for phase two of the DDL pilot in Wyoming are cleared for takeoff.

Want the latest DDL pilot news? Check out our brand-new Infographic highlighting current pilot results, and follow us on Twitter!

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