Comment by fn-mote
> The queues have been mostly replaced with "take a number" systems where you can sit down and wait...
My recent experience was: sign up online and get a 30 min window (9:00-9:30 say). Queue everyone for that 30 minute window outside the building. At exactly 9:30, enter and go through the usual queues inside. The advantage is that getting through those queues now takes 30 minutes or less because their length is limited. Presumably we/they traded volume of processing for certainty of time spent in the queue. A very familiar tradeoff for a computer scientist.
The UK has a similar situation for hospitals. Your driving licence system sounds like a great embarrassment though.