Most tolling agencies aren’t significantly affected by these violations financially because the majority of drivers comply with the law. But MTA Bridges and Tunnels in New York City, one of the busiest toll agencies in the United States, reported a loss of more than $21 million in 2023 due to obstructed plates, a more than 140% increase from 2020, according to Aaron Donovan, the agency’s deputy communications director.
The agency projects a slightly lower revenue loss of nearly $19 million for 2024, thanks to the new task force dedicated to cracking down on untraceable vehicles. The task force
Amanda Hernández | Stateline.org (TNS)
State and local legislators in Tennessee and Pennsylvania are cracking down on the use of “license plate flippers,” devices that allow drivers to obscure or conceal their license plates at the press of a button.
License plate flippers are commonly used for aesthetic purposes at auto shows, where they allow drivers to switch between custom or decorative plates. But across the country, thousands of drivers also flip or cover their license plates to evade detection — whether by law enforcement, toll systems or automated speed cameras.
Texas and Washington explicitly banned the devices in 2013. Nonetheless, it’s generally illegal across the United States to alter or obstruct a license plate, no matter the method.
In Tennessee, a law that went into effect in July bans the purchase, sale, possession of and manufacture of plate flippers. Lawmakers said they worried about drivers trying to evade law enforcement.
“We don’t have any toll roads today, but we do have criminals today,” Tennessee state Republican Rep. Greg Martin, who sponsored the legislation in the House, said in an interview. “This [measure] is to make sure that everyone is playing on the same playing field.”
Under the new law, anyone who purchases a license plate flipper could face up to six months in jail and a fine of up to $500. Those caught manufacturing or selling these devices could face up to 11 months and 29 days in jail, along with a fine of up to $2,500.
The Pennsylvania House passed, with bipartisan support, legislation that would ban license plate flippers and impose a $2,000 penalty on those caught using or selling them. The bill now goes to the Senate.
“With speed cams and red-light cams becoming more and more prevalent around, there are technologies that are coming out for people to evade safety on the roads,” Pennsylvania state Democratic Rep. Pat Gallagher, the bill’s lead sponsor in the House, said in an interview.
Cities take action
Some cities also are looking to crack down on these devices.
In April, Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle Parker, a Democrat, signed a bill into law banning the purchase, installation, possession of and sale of “manual, electric, or mechanical” license plate flippers, with violations punishable by a $2,000 fine.
“Tag flipping belongs in a James Bond movie, not on our city streets,” Philadelphia Councilmember Mike Driscoll, a Democrat, said in an interview with Stateline. “It’s not just a problem in the city of Philadelphia; this sense of entitlement and lawlessness is going on all over the country.
“Every municipality has got to take these things seriously,” Driscoll said.
In March, New York state and city officials launched a multi-agency task force dedicated to identifying and removing so-called “ghost cars” — vehicles that are untraceable by traffic cameras and toll readers due to their forged or altered license plates — from New York City streets.
In 2022, New York City Mayor Eric Adams, a Democrat, reached an agreement with Amazon to help search for and restrict the sale of smokescreen and tinted license plate covers to customers with a New York state address. This collaboration followed the …read more
Source:: The Mercury News – Entertainment
