Beginning this week, New York drivers will have the option of buying an enhanced driver's license to comply with stricter travel requirements adopted after 9/11.
Governor Paterson announced in May that the State and DHS had come to terms on the Enhanced Drivers Licenses. The new licenses will contain an identifying computer chip and can be used instead of a more expensive passport at U.S. land and sea border crossings between Canada, Mexico, Bermuda and the Caribbean.
The licenses will cost around $80, about $30 more than a regular driver's license. To get an EDL, New Yorkers will be required to visit a DMV office to provide various proofs of identity and citizenship, which will be verified by the DMV.
The EDL license will not look significantly different from the current document, but it will have additional features to clearly indicate that it is an Enhanced Driver License.
New York State DMV Commissioner David Swarts and Canadian and Homeland Security officials will talk about the new licenses at the international Peace Bridge in Buffalo Tuesday.
