Is This The Future of Personalised Number Plates

Drivers in Dubai may soon be using digital number plates under new plans.

In a trial starting next month, vehicles will be fitted with smart plates with digital screens, GPS and transmitters.

The new plates will be able to inform emergency services if a driver has an accident.

Dubai has recently spearheaded a number of new transport initiatives as it seeks to become an international technology hub.

What are the advantages of the plates?
According to Sultan Abdullah al-Marzouqi, the head of the Vehicle Licensing Department at Dubai's Roads and Transport Authority (RTA), the plates will make life easier for drivers in Dubai.

As well as contacting the police and ambulance services if the vehicle is involved in a collision, the technology allows real-time communication with other drivers about traffic conditions or any accidents ahead.

The number plates can also change to display an alert if the vehicle or digital plate is stolen.

Payment for fines, parking fees or renewing registration plates will be automatically deducted from users' accounts. Number plates can also be changed using the RTA's app or website.

What is being tested?
According to Sultan Abdullah, the trial will work out any potential technological glitches caused by Dubai's desert climate.

It is not clear how much the plates will cost, with Sultan Abdullah saying that the final cost of the project will only be known after the trial ends in November.

However, the technology allows the transport authorities to track drivers, raising potential issues surrounding privacy and information security.

Dubai is continuing its drive to become one of the most advanced cities in the world when it comes to transportation.

As well as pioneering the use of taxi drones, the metropolis is also looking at extending communications technology in standard cars.

Under new plans, digital licence plates could be fitted to cars in order to automatically inform the emergency services in case of an accident.

The plates would be connected to GPS transmitters inside the car and inform not only emergency services and the police in the event of an accident, but also other road users to warn them of traffic disruption.

Sultan Abdullah al-Marzouqi, the head of the Vehicle Licensing Department at Dubai's Roads and Transport Authority (RTA), said that the plates will make life easier for drivers in Dubai.

Automatic parking fine payment
The digital number plates would be synced up to a user's account so that any outstanding parking fees, road fines or licence plate renewals would be automatically deducted.

The plates could also change to display a special alert or some other form of warning if they're stolen.

It's not clear how much the plates will cost, but according to Sultan Abdullah, they are currently being tested. The trial is set to run until November and will find out how the technology works with Dubai's desert climate.

Naturally, there are some privacy concerns as the plates could possibly be used by the authorities to track drivers.

How close a series of letters or numbers are to a real name of word: if the match quality is high (and the numbers and letters are very convincing in making a popular word), the value of the registration plate will be higher. This means that a match like 5IMON, for the name Simon, will be worth a lot more than a more obscure set of letters and numbers that are not as convincing a match, such as S17 MMM for the name Sam.

The style of the plate: this means establishing if it is a new-style plate, an older-style format or if it is dateless or Irish, for instance. Other options are that it is a prefix-style plate or a suffix-style plate. New-style number plates, which have been produced since 2001, tend to be the least valuable because they are a bit less appealing to some collectors, plus the rule about not having plates that are newer than your car can also come into play, putting people off from buying a newer-style plate for their older car. Prefix-style number plates, which were in production between 1983 and 2001 can be more popular as more vehicles are entitled to have those licence numbers, and they may have fewer characters in total. Suffix-style plates, issued from 1963 to 1983 are relatively rare, which means they can attract higher prices than prefix-style plates and newer designs. Dateless number plates, also known as cherished number plates, were produced between 1903 and 1963 and are nearly always the most valuable number plate configurations; they have fewer digits and their dateless nature means that people can hide the age of their car. Irish number plates are similar to dateless number plates, especially because they don’t have a year identifier. They also tend to be cheaper than other types of vehicle registration plates.

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