Islanders are reminded not to place anything over their licence plates that would affect their readability – not even clear plastic covers, said Transportation and Infrastructure Renewal Minister Robert Vessey.
“Licence plates are important tools that law enforcement uses to identify vehicles and keep our roads safe,” Minister Vessey said. “Legislation states that licence plate numbers should be legible at all times, and licence plate covers can impair the plate’s reflective qualities and make them harder to read at night.”
A licence plate must be “clearly visible and legible and shall be maintained free from foreign materials,” according to the province’s Highway Traffic Act, section 21(3). Failure to do so carries a minimum fine of $100 plus court costs.
Street lights and headlights can reflect off a plastic cover and make licence numbers difficult for our officers and others to see.
“Nothing on a licence plate should obscure its number at any time of the day or night,” said Chief Paul Smith of the Charlottetown Police Services. “The ability to clearly read a licence plate plays a role in not only road safety – by possibly identifying a potential impaired driver – but can help reduce victimization in other crimes such as gas drive-offs.”
For more information on highway safety, visit www.gov.pe.ca/highwaysafety, or for the complete Highway Traffic Act, visit www.gov.pe.ca/tir and click “Legislation.”