The Great Gauteng Number Plate Mystery: What Will the New ‘Smart’ Plates Really Cost You?

Imagine being told you must soon buy a new, mandatory product for your car, but the government can’t tell you what it will cost. This is the reality facing millions of Gauteng motorists as the province forges ahead with its new “smart” number plate system, shrouding its price tag in secrecy.

Despite a six-month pilot programme already underway, the Gauteng Department of Transport has admitted to civil rights group AfriForum that it does not know the final cost motorists will have to bear for the new plates, which feature QR codes and anti-tamper security.

“Don’t Ask Me About the Price”

The alarming lack of clarity was highlighted at the pilot launch by Gauteng MEC for Transport, Kedibone Diale-Tlabela, who told motorists, “This is a great idea, please get your new number plates. Don’t ask me about the price, just go and do it.”

This dismissive stance prompted AfriForum to submit a formal request for information under the Promotion of Access to Information Act (PAIA). The response from the department was telling: it could not provide a cost estimate. The department vaguely cited “manufacturing inputs,” “new technology,” and fees from the South African Bureau of Standards as factors, stating that the pilot would “give a better understanding of the cost implications.”

A Mounting Financial Burden for Motorists

While the plate cost itself is unknown, the associated fees are clear and already significant. The current process for registering a vehicle in Gauteng costs R216, with a licence disc costing at least R408 for a light vehicle and a R72 administration fee. Standard number plates currently cost between R400 and R500.

This means, even with the old plates, the total cost for a motorist is already over R1,000. With the new, technologically advanced plates likely to be more expensive and produced by a smaller pool of certified printers, the final bill is expected to be “significantly higher.”

A Rushed Rollout Amid Economic Strain

With less than two months left in the pilot, the province intends to mandate the plates for all Gauteng-registered vehicles. Yet, motorists remain completely in the dark about the final price and the timeline for the compulsory changeover.

“It is clear that the government is blind to the economic challenges that Gauteng residents face if they want to change the entire number plate system without even estimating what it will cost the consumer,” said Louis Boshoff, an AfriForum campaign officer.

The Organisation Undoing Tax Abuse (OUTA) has added another warning: by making the process more costly and cumbersome, the Gauteng government risks driving away big fleet operators who might simply license their vehicles in other, cheaper provinces, resulting in a substantial loss of revenue for Gauteng.

For the average motorist already grappling with rising fuel and living costs, the new number plates represent another forced and unpredictable expense, mandated by a government that seems unwilling to provide the most basic of answers: how much will it cost?

{Source: MyBroadband}

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