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NOTE: In case you are reading this months later, please note the day it was put up - Yes it's an April Fool!
The Driver and Vehicle Agency has announced a major shake up to how all vehicles in Northern Ireland are registered.
It's all change for the present vehicle registration system, as its set to amalgamate with the Republic's methodology, incorporating the year, year half 1st or 2nd, county and number of registration.
Number plates will also include the EU logo, the County name in Irish and letters IRL for the island of Ireland. Gone will be the yellow rear plates to be replaced with white front and back. There will be an additional option to have the county name in Ulster Scots if requested.
While the announcement has been made today 1 April, it won't come into force until 1 September 2022.
Speaking on the changes DVA Spokesperson Euan D Ireland said "This licencing plate alignment is one of the unresolved regulatory requirements outlined in the Brexit Protocol. It has been deemed necessary due to the fact that while technically Northern Ireland isn't in the EU, technically it is!"
Locally it means that gone are the present XZ and SZ designations, with all vehicles registered in County Down to have the DN letters while those registered in County Armagh will simply have the letter A representing the County city. A vehicle registered in Down in the first half of this year would be 221 DN 1234 while in Armagh it would be 221 A 1234
Motorists will have the chance to re-register their current vehicle in the new format if they wish at a cost of £149, with the year designated as the year the vehicle was first registered.
Tipping the hat to the Good Friday Agreement Derry motorists will have the choice of either DY for Derry or LY for Londonderry. Normally the city would have been assigned just one letter but as Dublin and Limerick have already taken the D and L that wasn't possible!
Prof O'Lail, Deputy Head of the Faculty of Observational Law at Dublin City University believes the move will help communities north and south of the border become more relaxed in their driving habits and ultimately become safer drivers. "Presently when I'm driving on the Naas Dual Carriageway and I see that northern plate flash by at 150kph, I'm inclined to emit a loud barrage of expletives along the lines of 'Who the **** do those ****** northerners think they are'. In that moment I admit, I'm not observing the road as well as I should be myself!"
"With all plates on the island the same colour and layout, it will be harder to instantly notice that the motorist cutting up on my inside is my cross border friend." he added.
The new County Codes
Antrim: AM
Armagh: A
Down: DN
Derry: LY or DY
Fermanagh: FH
Tyrone: TE
