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BY PRINCE GOLEZ
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MANILA – Will larger motorcycle plates deter motorcycle-riding criminals?
Senators have unanimously approved Senate Bill No. 1397, or the proposed “Motorcycle Crime Prevention Act of 2017,” which seeks to enlarge motorcycle plates.
Increasing the size and visibility of motorcycle plates will enable them to be read from a distance, and this will help witnesses and law enforcers identify riders involved in accidents or crimes, said Richard Gordon, one of the authors.
Gordon said the number of incidents involving motorcycle-riding criminals has increased over the years.
“In Metro Manila alone, the number ballooned to more than 3,000 in 2013,” he said, citing a Philippine National Police report. “In 2014, it went up to 6,219 and decreased to 6,026 in 2015.”
If the bill – approved on Tuesday – is enacted into law, the Land Transportation Office (LTO) shall issue bigger and reflectorized plate numbers, which must be placed in the front and rear parts of the motorcycle.
The license plates should be big enough to be read from a distance of between 12 and 15 meters, the bill stated.
The LTO shall also devise a plate number color scheme for every region to easily identify where motorcycles are registered, and an alphanumeric system that will help the public easily identify and recollect plate numbers.
“Motorcycles have become crime machines,” Gordon said. “With small plate numbers, criminals on board motorcycles easily flee the scene of the crime, and usually there are no witnesses who can read or identify plate numbers so that the authorities can go after the criminals.”
Anyone who drives without a plate number shall face up to two years of jail time and a fine of not less than P50,000 but not more than P100,000, or both, the bill stated./PN
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