New vehicle license plate: Does this strengthen our closeness to home?

New vehicle license plate: Does this strengthen our closeness to home?

In Germany, an exciting discussion about vehicle license plates is based, which could possibly cause a breath of fresh air in the license plate design. The professor of destination management at Heilbronn University, Ralf Bochert, has made a proposal for the introduction of his own car license plate, which could affect 320 medium-sized cities in Germany. This idea aims to strengthen city marketing and create more identity locally.

Bochert is convinced that the introduction of individual letter combinations on number plates would help the municipalities to promote their local identity both internally and externally. "It is a small topic that appeals to the heart and reinforces the connection to home," he explained, while emphasizing the importance of this measure. Many citizens want a stronger local location, and Bochert sees this an unbureaucratic solution.

Why are old license plates no longer so popular?

The current regulation on the vehicle license plates has its roots in a liberalization of 2012, which enables drivers to choose from several local and regional shortcuts. This turned out to be exemplary because many discarded abbreviations were revived. Despite this possibility of using the old combinations, the system remains largely unchanged, since only the use of old license plates is permitted in certain cases.

With the proposed change, 320 cities that currently do not have their own license plates would benefit from an individual identifier. A list of possible abbreviations includes: BKR for Bad Krozingen and Ben for Bensheim. These abbreviations could help the cities to position themselves better in regional competition and to set a strong sign for local identity.

How could the process to be introduced to the introduction of new license plates?

In order to put the proposal into practice, a federal state would first have to submit an application to the Federal Ministry of Transport to change the vehicle registration regulation. Bochert describes this process as relatively uncomplicated: "Only two sentences have to be changed so that additional license plates are made possible," he says. The path for new license plates would then lead to the state, the legal test steps and finally the publication in the Federal Gazette.

Nevertheless, there have been no concrete applications of nation side, which indicates that further discussions within the municipalities and between the state governments are necessary before this wish can become a reality.

The support for the proposal grows in the municipalities. Many mayors have expressed the idea positively about the idea and see it a valuable opportunity for their cities to promote the feeling of belonging. Erik Lierenfeld, the mayor of Dormagen, summed it up: "These letters show where you come from, where you belong."

Positive signals also come from the federal government, which is obviously open to the idea. Oliver Luksic, Parliamentary State Secretary in the Federal Ministry of Transport, says that the request is being benevolently checked. However, it remains to be seen whether the state governments will submit appropriate applications.

However, there are also skeptical voices on this topic. Achim Brötel, President of the District Day, said that there are far more urgent problems that require politicians' attention. He criticizes the proposal as superfluous and warns of a possible flooding of the license plate market, which would not bring any real benefit.

Overall, the topic of the new car indicators shows how much the interest in home and identity issues is rooted in the population. However, the way to the introduction will be a political process that will include both supporters and critics. The chance of new license plates is given, but the final result remains to be seen.