One million license plates being produced monthly at LTO

READY FOR DELIVERY In this photo taken in October 2022, an employee of the Land Transportation Office packs new vehicle plates in the agency’s main office in Quezon City so that these pieces can be prepared for distribution. (NIÑO JESUS ORBETA)

MANILA, Philippines — One million license plates are being produced monthly at the Land Transportation Office (LTO) to solve the agency’s backlog especially on motorcyle plates.

“We are now producing one million plates a month. We have dedicated machines that cater only to motor vehicles,” said LTO chief Vigor Mendoza II in a statement.

“And, of course, focus on production para sa mas maraming backlog sa plaka ng motorsiklo (for the larger backlog of motorcycle plates),” he noted.

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LTO has a backlog of 13 million on motorcycle plates.

“With the current production rate, we will be able to wipe out the backlog for motorcycles by early 2025,” Mendoza said.

“Mas marami kase ito, pero we are confident of addressing it. We are on the right track,” he explained.

(Because this is more, we are confident of addressing it.)

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The agency aims to remove the 80,000 backlog on vehicle plates by the end of November.

It also wants to shorten the waiting time for new license plates to 7 to 10 days from the submission of car documents.

At the current pace, the procedure takes months.

“We estimate that the current demand for motor vehicle plates is around 2,000 vehicles a day. So [multiplied by] two for the front and back plates], so it’s 4,000 a day,” Mendoza said.

“We have that capacity. There’s no reason why a buyer who comes to you now will have to wait months to get their plates,” he added.

READ: System in place to address backlog in vehicle plates – LTO chief