Amidst the fracas surrounding non-regulation number plates and enforcement, Road Transport Department (JPJ) director-general Datuk Seri Ismail Ahmad has revealed in an exclusive interview with BH Auto that the government is considering engaging the help of the Prison Department to produce standardised vehicle number plates.
Under the initiative, dubbed the National Plate Policy (n-plate), all number plates will come from one source and meet a set specification, thereby eliminating the age-old issue of non-regulation number plates being produced at accessory and signage shops. The policy is targeted to begin mid-next year, and JPJ will handle the distribution of the plates, the report said.
Engaging the Prison Department for the production of number plates would help keep costs low, as well as generate income for the department and the inmates, Ismail told BH Auto.
Prisoners in the US and Canada have been making number plates for years – in fact, number plate production is among the more profitable businesses under the Alabama Department of Corrections’ prison industry programme, the publication reported.
Prisoners in New Jersey, Florida, Ohio and Alabama produce over seven million number plates per year. Florida State Prison’s inmates are capable of producing 30,000 plates a day – that’s 4.5 million plates a year, BH Auto added.
“(Translated) There are many factors to consider before we launch this new policy, and we will discuss with the Prison Department on how we can realise this proposal,” BH Auto quoted Ismail as saying. “I also need to discuss the issue in depth with the Transport minister because this is a big change.”
JPJ is also apparently planning to revive the idea of electronic number plates, or e-plates, as part of the standardised n-plate’s launch next year. There is a possibility that the n-plates could be equipped with RFID tags, Ismail told BH Auto.
“(Translated) Electronic plates are also one of the things we’re considering. I can’t reveal much because we have not finalised this proposal yet,” he said. The RFID tags contain data such as registration number, owner’s details, make, model, colour, road tax and insurance details, possibly eliminating the need for road tax stickers.
The subject of e-plates surfaced as early as late-2006 – they were touted at the time as the equivalent of a MyKad for cars, in an attempt to deter car theft.
In early-2007, it emerged that the government was considering the installation of 700 surveillance cameras nationwide. The cameras would be equipped with RFID scanners, allowing them to read the e-plates.
The chapter then faded into relative obscurity – until last week, when it was reported that the police are set to use Automated Number Plate Recognition scanners at entry points into the country, to identify foreign vehicles with unsettled summonses.
While the standardisation of number plates will put any qualms of legibility and conformity to rest, we wonder how much these new plates will cost (let alone the electronic RFID-equipped ones), and how efficiently they can be distributed to vehicle owners. And while it shouldn’t be too much of a problem with newly-registered cars, will there be a reasonable grace period for the rest of us to swap our ‘old’ plates for the new ones?
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after doing so many things, here comes the agenda…
So now crony will volunteer themselves to go to the prison to make number plate for us, is this what JPJ is trying to tell us?
Sikit2 semua mau tiru….semua mau tiru….
Otak tara ka??? Otak sendiri tara guna ka??? Otak udang ka????
We all know by now, that every proposal is only hot air… as the Govt suffers from a cronic illness called “Left hand not talking to Right hand”
As much as I hate the idea of cronyism, I think this is a good idea. Standardised plates for all cars, plus it gives the prison inmates something to do..
Agreed, this is a better idea and I hope it goes into action.
Now to deal with those annoying strobe lights…
A commendable and very much welcome initiative. But as always in this bolehland, somebody with strong connection with the power that be will make a fortune out of this
Finally, some common sense.
The solution has been in front of their nose for ages.
All this I read only with one understanding….
there’s a new member to the crony or new money making way for the crony.
Can’t blame me right? If you legalized the existing business and then you make some party monopolize the business with the pretext of better controlling, I think it ain’t right. There’s something missing you are not telling….
May I know how much Jabatan Penjara will charge per plate?
What will happen with thousand of small shops that producing number plates for years?
Just give the requirement to everyone to follow. This is not rocket science stuff….bukan susah sangat pun…..
See, i told you so… And this is better with cheap or almost free labour. All the brouhaha about number plates is a “pre-emptive strike” to make tonnes of money by the “contractor/supplier/middle man” of the number plates. Wonder how does this deal benefits the prisoners.. Pity them..
Pity the prisoners? Really?
In terms of exploitation.. Even to animals.. Unless you condone humans or animals to be treated as such…
Good Move!! This is what we want… http://www.e-plate.com/
If JPJ/G’ment decided to go ahead with this. I want to suggest them to use Metal plate (ie: zinc or aluminum or any longlasting material) such as in the USA.
Plastic plate won’t last long, the number tend to drop over time. When debris hit the plate it tends to break.
2 cents.
A lot of countries use plastic plates with printed numbers on them, so they can’t drop off. They seem to be pretty durable and also more reflective than metal embossed plates.
This is absolutely an excellent idea. Hopefully, after this, all the cronies will go the jail to vie for the project; and remain there 4ever.
Before you approve this proposal, just make sure the authorities populate the prison first (rather than with the usual criminals) but with corrupt Ministers, politicians, civil servants… Then and only then this proposal sounds like a brilliant idea… Imagine them (these white-collar gangsters, criminals) making the number plates for the people…
Tuan penasihat….25 persen…
my question is…can the plate price the same with what we pay at any workshop now because come on do I need to go to the nearest prison to get my new plate number replacing broken plate number? If I am not mistaken nearest prison in Klang Valley is at Sungai Buloh…or I need to order and wait 1 week for pick up at say nearest Pos office?? it is noble to give jobs to inmates but ever think of the mobility for getting the plate numbers?
this is good…they should implement it soonest possible and pls dont wait too long..anyway, pls come out with a very interesting design..not what like we are having currently..it is so lame design..
I agree with the bro….
I will agree on the metal number plate long lasting…
I formerly use the metal plate like those in Singapore ..
But I scared JPJ Macau I change to normal plate again…
Cost me rm30.00…
If prison how much will their kenakan pada Rakyat….
JPJ or G… Should think Baik Baik…la sebelum buat buat apa apa keputusan … Yg menyusahkan Rakyat…
bodoh lah paultan punya reader.. semua nak plate murah! it is an insult to inmate to pay them cheap! the price should be more than the current market price, then only the distribution of wealth goes to the deserved one.
Nothing wrong to keep the inmates productive and give them a sense of dignity.
But at the back of everybody’s mind is: There will be a huge crony behind this new monopoly.
Why not increase the fines to RM2000 per offense?
This way the accessory shop will still have business while everyone will want to stick by the rules.Just keep enforcement stringently constant,like what we see in Singapore and Australia.
yes, please do it .
Car plate is simple.
Follow standard, OK.
Not follow, summon.
It’s basic right?!
Our G do not have more important job to do?
G should makes lower debt, eliminate cronism,
eliminate corruption, improve G servant efficiency and standard to basic.
Now is very poor even not up to basic.
Merdeka? it just MEREKA slogan to suck your money!
I thoroughly agree with this idea.
I’ve visited Penjara Kajang a few times with a friend who does news coverage about inmates doing handicraft to be sold to the general public.
It allows the inmates not only to gain knowledge that they can utilise to earn some money once they leave the prison ( as a multitude of previous cases proving that inmates, once released from the prison, is unable to find a job to survive, sadly, most of the ex-inmates cases was, to me, was done due to desperation to survive the daily grind ), but also allows the inmates to save up money that will be held by Penjara Kajang and will only be given back to the inmates once they are released.
In terms of QC I believe it is not that hard to do. Each prison centre involved in this project, once it is approved by the Cabinet, should have a few samples of the plates with the correct measurement and reaches the minimum quality level.
The only problem I foresee is delivery time from prison to vehicle owners lah. :)
Finally, a good proposal. This has been done elsewhere for ages. Make it attractive like the European ones. I’d rather have the contract go to the cronies than having those irregular enforcement for “nombor plet fansi”.
BTW the JPJ are no longer issuing summons for those fancy plates; now the summons are issued by the police instead.
Finally some sense with a good proposal. Addressing the problem at the source.
I just hope I don’t have to pay runner to collect my plate when is implemented.
One thing I don’t understand, is that such a big deal with plates? Motorcylist already have a smaller size plate then the Cars. So there are already legit smaller size plates on the road.
I don’t forsee delivery time problem if managed properly.
After all, you can already pre determine the next batch of numbers. So all the plates can be pre-manufactured.
We don’t have customised plates like overseas, all follow sequence.
I second the idea of making the plate nice. I want to be proud of my Selangor plate.