By: Natasha Archary

Gauteng motorists can breathe a sigh of relief as the new number plates which are to be rolled out in the province will be done so in a pilot phase first.
In February, Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi announced that in the vehicle owners in the province will be forced to apply for new, sophisticated license plates with effect from 01 April.
However, Lesufi later changed this to only apply to government vehicles in a pilot phase, with a date for the rollout plan to the public not confirmed.
Before the public rollout takes place, Transport Minister Sindisiwe Chikunga will have to finalise the bill.
The new “track and trace” plates for Gauteng come with a QR code which will make it practically impossible to clone.
According to Lesufi, Gauteng ran out of new numbers and letters to assign to vehicles, so the decision was made to introduce the new number plates, which should be tamper-proof and allow authorities to detect if someone crosses the border, according to Lesufi.
Renewing a license disc will require the applicant to apply for a new license plate as of April 1. It will be feasible to get a new license plate without having to renew the license disc, but not the other way around.
Not only will motorists need to re-register their vehicle, but they will also be liable to pay for the new number plates.
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