as I read it in a Manila Standard Today column (Source: Manila Standard Today column by Alvin Capino dated 9/23/2009)

Starting next month, the Land Transportation Office will be implementing a new identification system for all motor vehicles—from motorcycles to cars to trucks.

After hearing the presentation by project proponent Stradcom of the project, one is bound to ask an obvious question: why only now?

The vehicle ID system to be implemented by LTO is high tech and yet low cost. It addresses many of the land transportation problems from cheating in smoke emission, to carnapping to “colorum” public transport to addressing the perennial traffic problem.

The heart of the new LTO vehicle ID system is Radio Frequency Identification. RFID is a system that transmits the identity of an object or person using radio frequency waves.

Actually, RFID is not new. It has been used for various purposes. RFID is the system used for toll collection for vehicles in Singapore. It has been piloted in some supermarkets in the US where price readouts are done simultaneously on goods without removing them from the cart. In Mexico it is used for vehicle identification and for registration, just as what is planned by the LTO.

In the case of LTO’s RFID system, what would be involved would be a tag and a reader. The tag would be in the form of an RFID-enabled sticker mounted to the windshield of a vehicle. The sticker is the same size and thickness as the present registration sticker. The RFID sticker acts as transmitter and relays information from the LTO Central Database to handheld readers used by enforcers.

When a RFID-enabled sticker is scanned by a handheld reader, the enforcers would have access to the following information: motor vehicle file number, engine number, chassis number, plate number, motor vehicle type, color, make, series, year model, body type, motor vehicle classification, owner name, last registration date, alarms/violations (both settled and unsettled).

In the case of public utility vehicles, the RFID sticker will also give information on franchise and route of the vehicle.

All vehicles getting new registration starting October this year will be required to get an RFID-enabled sticker. By September next year, when the registration cycle is completed, all motor vehicles in the country will have the RFID stickers.

By that time any vehicle without an RFID sticker will be deemed unregistered or carnapped and is certain to be apprehended by traffic enforcers.

The installation of an RFID tag would be part of the registration process. It will not duplicate the registration process. Instead it would enhance the motor vehicle registration process by allowing electronic authentication of data.

Installation of the RFID is done only once and the RFID tag is permanent. It cannot be transferred to another vehicle. It cannot be removed. Once installed, any attempt to remove the tag will destroy it.

The stickers will be placed on the windshields of cars and trucks. In the case of motorcycles and tricycles, the tag will be encased in plastic for weather protection and placed on the upper middle area of the gas tank.

One-time payment for the RFID stickers is P350 and the sticker has an expected lifetime of 10 years. So actually the fee is not expected to be an issue since it will amount to only P35 a year.

This is about the same cost as the next-to-useless drug tests which all those renewing their drivers’ license are required to take.

Not surprisingly, legitimate public utility vehicle operators welcome the implementation of the RFID system during the nationwide dialogs held by the LTO. Through the RFID system, “colorum” public transportation vehicles can now be easily monitored and identified.

There are many other obvious benefit to the implementation of the system. It will ensure the strict implementation of the Clean Air Act for motor vehicles by preventing the non-appearance of vehicles for emission testing. Tagged vehicles that are found non-compliant with pollution standards will be banned from the streets.

Traffic enforcement and management can also be enhanced by the RFID system. It allows for real-time access to vital information from the LTO database.

Also important for vehicle owners is the fact that the system will deter carnapping. Each RFID tag is specifically attuned to the unique information for any given vehicle. Any attempt to register a reported carnapped vehicle would be immediately discovered.

The system should have been implemented years ago. However, the process to get approvals and the required public consultations takes time. It has been more than three years since the project proponent started the approval process.

The implementation of the RFID system is another feather in the cap for all past LTO chiefs, but especially to incumbent chief Arturo Lomibao.


I agree that this device can possibly be considered as a tool that can be used for the invasion of privacy... but.. we have to establish muna the technical capabilities of the RFID itself. hanggang gaano kahaba / lawak ba ang range ng RF signal nito? from what I read in the column, ang design is may mga handheld readers that would "read" the RFID just like a handheld scanner reads the bar code of the products you buy off the grocery / mall...

kung limited ang range, it has to be established exactly how long is that range... kapag sobrang lapit, it is quite useless for surveillance purposes...

kaya ba ito mabasa ng say, super super telephoto lens from several kilometers away? maaari siguro makikita ng super powerful camera / lens ang mismong RFID, but to be able to read the code in the RFID to get a key para ma search sa LTO database? I think it is another matter...


I also agree na dapat and mas appropriate ang use nito for PUVs.. although nasa government naman talaga ang prerogative to impose policies to protect it's citizens.. nasa presentation lang at justification kung papano nila gagawin.. basta ba hindi labag sa batas at sa constitution .. magagawa nila yun...

if the deeper motive for this is to earn money.. well... kasama na rin yun dun hehe..