Gauteng to get new number plates in 2023

Gauteng premier Panyaza Lesufi says that the province will be ramping up its fight against crime and corruption by overhauling the province’s car licencing regime – which includes introducing new number plates for vehicles in 2023.

The premier was presenting the findings of several investigative reports this week, which included issues presented by the Special Investigative Unit (SIU) around licencing departments.

Lesufi did not go into detail on the SIU’s investigations but outlined some of the findings into fraud and corruption at traffic departments.

Of note, he said, it was found that optometrist certificates needed to gain access to licences were fraudulent, and there were acts of fee dumping and manipulation of licencing processes by officials.

Fee dumping, he said, is where licence applicants are allowed to proceed with the process despite being in arrears. Through collusion with officials, applicants can bypass this by dumping the fees onto other citizens or deceased people.

The SIU also uncovered collusion between applicants, driving schools, examiners and other officials at licencing departments, which ranged from queue manipulation – where applicants are able to jump the queue through driving schools – to more serious forms of corruption.

The SIU report called for lifestyle audits to be conducted on all officials who were alleged to be involved.

Lesufi said that the report highlighted flaws within the province’s licencing regime, which has given impetus for a complete overhaul of the system.

“We want to put stricter measures as part of our quest to overhaul the entire licencing regime,” he said. “We are fighting crime as part of our priority in the province, and motor vehicles are key in fighting crime.

“Either they hijack you through motor vehicles, or robberies happen through motor vehicles, they use them as getaway vehicles. This report is assisting us now to reposition the entire licencing regime. We’re going to overhaul the entire regime,” he said.

As part of the process, the premier confirmed that the province would get new number plates in 2023.

“We can confirm with you now that there will be a new number plate for cars from next year – and it’s part of overhauling and ensuring that we fight these types of crime.

“A motor vehicle is a source of crime – if we don’t have the necessary details of the right owner and how that vehicle is going to be utilised, our fight against crime in the province will be defeated,” he said.

Number plate proposals

While the premier did not detail what sort of changes motorists can expect, the national government has been mulling changes to the technology used in the country’s number plates.

In 2020, the transport department said that the government is planning to introduce new motor vehicle licence plates through the National Road Traffic Amendment Bill, which was passed by the National Assembly in September 2022 and is currently before the National Council of Provinces.

The change involves embedding microdots into a new number plate that will then be regulated.

“Manufacturers, as well as those that print out and issue them to motor vehicle owners so that number plates that are forged will be easily identified,” the department said at the time.

Microdots have seen increasing popularity as a safety feature on South African vehicles. They are classified as a particle with a diameter smaller than 1.8 mm, which bears a unique, optically readable microdot identifier – typically the vehicle’s 17-digit VIN number or another registered PIN.

The department said that technology which is currently employed across the country’s highways, especially in Gauteng and Cape Town, as well as at the country’s borders, will be able to scan these micro-dots.

Similar technology can also be deployed to scan vehicles that travel under highway bridges.

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Gauteng to get new number plates in 2023