Manhattan District President Mark Levine released a report pointing out the rampant use of “ghost license plates” by car owners to evade tolls or fines, causing annual losses of up to $200 million for the city of New York.
“Ghost license plates” refer to plates that are defaced, obscured, or forged, making them unidentifiable. Levine’s latest report on August 12 revealed that approximately 100,000 cars passing through traffic enforcement cameras each month have unidentifiable license plates, leading to the inability to issue violation tickets. Additionally, 5% of cars passing through toll stations citywide have information that cannot be read by the toll system, hence not paying tolls.
The report estimated that the practice of using “ghost license plates” or not displaying license plates at all to avoid tolls or fines costs the city of New York over $200 million in revenue annually. Moreover, these “ghost license plates” empower drivers to act recklessly, drive aggressively, and even engage in criminal activities.
Due to the widespread and escalating use of “ghost license plates,” the New York City Police Department, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA), and the Port Authority have carried out over 30 joint enforcement operations to crackdown on cars with fake plates passing through toll bridges and tunnels. They have seized 1,800 vehicles, issued 15,000 fines, and arrested 400 individuals. In the latest joint operation last month, 200 drivers were arrested, including a professional criminal carrying a loaded handgun suspected of a murder case dating back to 2005. However, Levine believes these actions are not sufficient to deter potential offenders.
With City Comptroller Brad Lander announcing his candidacy for mayor, Levine is considering running for city comptroller, and this report serves as a “temperature check.” Levine suggests that fines for defacing, altering, or forging license plates should be increased to over $150 and included in the violation points for suspended driver’s licenses. He also proposes equipping New York state license plates with wireless radio frequency transmitters so that traffic enforcement cameras can read damaged plates and incorporating artificial intelligence technology into enforcement and toll station cameras to decode unreadable plates. Additionally, cracking down on the sale of fake license plates or plate covers, enhancing police training and equipment to identify “ghost license plates” and issue fines are recommended.