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Anyone for front number plates?
Posted: Mon Jan 28, 2008 11:13 pm
by Viking
Shamelessly pinched from
elsewhere:
Guy Allen wrote:Words - Guy Allen
BikePoint
This will be national
By 2009, your motorcycle is likely to have a front numberplate, even though most of the rest of the world manages without them.
That's the result of a draft regulatory impact statement authored by Vic Roads.
The organisation has been working on the issue at the behest of a national council of transport ministers.
Testing of prototype plates has been completed and a final design for the laser-cut plastic identifiers, which are the same size as current rear plates, has been arrived at.
Three main types of mounting have been identified: adhesive fixing to a fairing or windscreen, bracket mounting above or below the headlight, and unspecified custom mounts. Estimated respective costs are $25, $70 and up to $150.
It is expected that state road registration authorities will bear the cost of the plates for the 540,000 registered bikes nationally which will need to be retro-fitted, but not for the mounting. New bikes will be charged for the cost.
Vic Roads estimates the initial fit-out of the national fleet will cost $22.1 million in 2009, $13.5 million of which will be covered by road authorities and the remainder of which will be borne by owners.
An additional $10 million is expected to be spent on a national propaganda campaign to support the move.
The report claims there will be a 2-4 per cent reduction in motorcycle road trauma as a result of the change, mostly due to a reduction in speeding because of the increased chance of being nabbed by a speed camera.
It also claims that approximately 49 per cent of motorcycles detected speeding are currently not identified because of the lack of front numberplate.
Few countries in the world (India and Singapore are among them) currently use front plates.
There are a few words I'd like to say, but they aren't suitable for polite company such as this.
Posted: Mon Jan 28, 2008 11:42 pm
by Kwackerz
Your rear plates arent that big though are they?
I dont agree with front plates. Kinda takes the fun out of hoisting a minger whilst speeding past a front view speed camera
Posted: Tue Jan 29, 2008 2:19 am
by Viking
Yeah, they're about 8 inches wide and 3 high. Probably smaller, actually.
But just where on a modern bike can you safely mount one of these things? I can't see any place to fit one.
Posted: Tue Jan 29, 2008 2:23 am
by Falcopops
bugger, I don't want one of those on mine.
Why can't we go back to the sharp metal ones mounted on the front mudguard, ideal for dismembering or decapitating jay walkers!
Posted: Tue Jan 29, 2008 1:49 pm
by Gio
Falcopops wrote: bugger, I don't want one of those on mine.
Why can't we go back to the sharp metal ones mounted on the front mudguard, ideal for dismembering or decapitating jay walkers!
Also any plod who jump out in front of you
Where the hell they'll fit them on fully faired bikes, I don't know, the fronts all lights and wheel.
Unless they fit em like the films showed on the likes of Roman chariots, I'd be in favour then
Posted: Tue Jan 29, 2008 4:34 pm
by Fausto
Falcopops wrote: bugger, I don't want one of those on mine.
Ha ha ha. You'll just have to move back to good old Blighty then
Posted: Tue Jan 29, 2008 11:06 pm
by Viking
They've been pushing for front plates for years now, all in the name of "safety".
I wish I had the numbers, but I remember an article saying that the government was missing out on something like AU$300,000 in revenue from speeding motorcycles. In the same article, they said they were missing out on over AU$1.5M because of all the cars with missing / damaged / unreadable front number plates.
So in effect, they want to spend tens of millions of dollars to recoup about half a million in 'lost revenue'.
Yeah, right. Any accountant with half a brain would shoot that down simply because of the lack of return for the investment.
Not to mention that front plates were removed 30 years ago for safety reasons, and the fact that no other country (bar a couple) have them.