By Aerol John Pateña/PNA
MANILA — The Land Transportation Office (LTO) assured motorcycle riders that the new license plates will not be made of metal, an official said on Tuesday.
LTO chief Edgar Galvante said no provision of the Motorcycle Crime Prevention Act states that the new motorcycle plates shall be made out of metal or steel.
“It is not true that the plate that will be placed in front of the motorcycle must be made of metal. The law does not state that metal plates must be manufactured,” he said in a press briefing amid speculations raised by motorcycle rider groups that the new plates might be unsafe.
He said the LTO has created a technical working group that will consult motorcycle manufacturers and riders on crafting the implementing rules and regulations (IRR) of the law.
“We are considering a conduction sticker material which is more lasting and does not pose any risk that this might be detached and hit the body of a motorcycle rider,” Galvante said.
Department of Transportation (DOTr) Secretary Arthur Tugade, meanwhile, said the law is aimed at ensuring the safety of motorcycle drivers and passengers.
President Rodrigo Duterte earlier signed Republic Act 11235 or the Motorcycle Crime Prevention Act mandating the LTO to produce bigger, readable, and color-coded number plates readable from the front, back, and side of the motorcycle from a distance of at least 15 meters.
The new law will penalize motorcycle drivers not using the readable plates with prision correccional (imprisonment between six months and one day to six years) as stated in the Revised Penal Code or pay a fine of not less than PHP50,000 but not more than PHP100,000 or both.
