Tagging and Radio Frequency Identification

Republic Act 4136 or "The Land Transportation and Traffic Code" requires both driver (operator) and the motor vehicle (operated) itself to be registered with the government.

It took me a whole day to renew my license the other day, the line was long and at every segment of the application there was another new thing to pay for. First I had to pay for a drug test which was really just an exercise in peeing in a bottle, they issued a certification after this, a piece of paper. Then came the medical exam in which I luckily remembered to wear contacts when required to read from the wall, another piece of paper was issued. Then I filled up a form with boxes for letters of my name which was quickly snatched by a person who was trying to "help" me, he asked me for 100 pesos. After waiting in line for three hours my picture was taken and I was asked for 20 pesos for a plastic sleeve to put my license in, I realized too late that these sleeve was not mandatory though it was sold at the picture-taking window, had I known I would have chosen a funkier color. The written exam came, and after this I was required to drive a brand new alto, I excitedly paid 270 pesos for its use then the person in charge handed me a slip which said that I drove well. All these forms were stapled together with my old driver's license. I waited for about two hours more when the lady from the releasing window asked me for 1100 pesos, I thought I was supposed to pay at the cashier. A receipt was issued for 810 pesos and I was handed my new license which details were entered into a computer by one person. It took less than five minutes for him to print my license.

The whole of the above paragraph could have been deleted should there have been just one line and one window, but I am no expert in management, so I promised myself that I would never let my license expire again.

As I was waiting in line, since this was Bulacan, conversations with strangers about the weather, politics and the government were common place. Then the discussion came to the issue of RFID.

I remembered a deliberation at the NTC about allowing such RFID, I also remember not knowing what the acronym stood for.

RFID is short for Radio Frequency IDentification, the deliberations were about allowing the use of such devices and issues on licensing and use of such device and which chunks of the air frequency these devices can use. The result of these deliberations is Memorandum Circular 03-08-2006 which can be found with this link: http://portal.ntc.gov.ph/wps/portal/!ut/p/_s.7_0_A/7_0_MA

Apparently according to my fellow persons in line, the LTO will be requiring RFID tags for every motor vehicle to be implemented by October. A fee will be charged for this which was 500 pesos according to them. These tags will be akin to the E-pass cards used with the expressways.

The use of these devices raise privacy and "big brother like" concerns, since with one scan, anyone with a RFID reader (the sale of which is regulated by the NTC) can see all the information stored in the RFID chip, such as vehicle make, color and should there be any violations.

There is safety in anonymity as I have learned in eight years of running around UP. Should this RFID system prove a success, using the same technology for driver's licenses may not be for off in the regulatory horizon, after all, as I learned form the written LTO test, driving is a privelege, not a right.

New technology means the disuse of the old technology, another useful survival knowhow I learned form running around UP is how to check for license plates presuming they be unobscured by a sticker, a plastic bag, suspicious dirt or alltogether removed. And this checking can be done with one text. Simply text:

LTO (space) Vehicle (space) and the plate number you want to verify.

And send to 2600

e.g. LTO Vehicle vbc116

The reply would state the make, model, year, color, last registration, and record of apprehension.

Being able to identify a vehicle is a valid regulation, this is the same reason license plates are issued in the first place. Installing RFID's on vehicles will make identification quicker, not all MMDA's after all, presumably have prepaid credits to text the LTO. The only question is how much information will be stored on such chips and who will be allowed access to this information.

And there's always the option of re-inputing the information on the chip to match another vehicle, which may or may not be of the same make, color or more importantly, owner.