Emissions tests to resume in Illinois Monday. Here’s where you can test your vehicle
Starting Monday, most agencies that offer vehicle emissions testings at Illinois Air Team locations will resume work under new safety guidelines.
Illinois Environmental Protection Agency Director John J. Kim announced testing will resume after operations were suspended in late March while the state worked to slow the spread of COVID-19. “Extensive” precautions are being put in place at Air Team testing locations to help prevent the spread of the deadly virus.
“Consistent with Phase 3 of the Restore Illinois Plan, the Vehicle Emissions Testing Program is preparing to resume operations on Monday, June 1, with a top priority of protecting motorists and personnel,” Kim said. “This will be a phased-in approach as we work to test vehicles that were due for testing when operations were suspended nearly 10 weeks ago.”
In an effort to reduce traffic volume and motorist wait time at testing locations, Illinois EPA is recommending motorists with a March or earlier vehicle registration expiration date have their vehicles tested in the month of June.
Vehicle registration expiration dates have been extended without penalty by at least 90 days, allowing motorists to wait to have their vehicles tested and renew vehicle registrations.
Those who do not feel comfortable visit testing locations can have the testing done at a later date or have someone else bring their vehicle in for testing, according to the EPA statement.
IEPA is also asking people 65 years or older, health care workers and first responders and those with pre-existing health conditions to visit testing locations during the first hour of each day, 8 a.m. on weekdays.
There are five Air Team testing locations in the metro-east, including:
Emissions testing begins just one day ahead of Illinois Department of Motor Vehicles reopens with new safety measures. From June 2 to July 31 offices will only serve new drivers, people with expired driver’s licenses or identification cards and people with vehicle transactions.
Customers and employees will be required to wear face masks unless a medical condition prohibits them from doing so, according to a news release from the Secretary of State’s office. There will be plexiglass dividers at the work stations and tape on the floor to show customers where they can stand 6 feet apart and to limit the number of people inside a facility at a time.
This story was originally published May 29, 2020 at 10:36 AM.