NEW YORK (PIX11) -- A new report from City Comptroller Brad Lander estimates New York lost an estimated $108 million in 2023 because of fake and obscure license plates that speed cameras could not detect.
New Yorkers said they see the problem everywhere.
“When I’m online and on TikTok, I see people advertising these kind of obscuring things [for license plates], either where it flips up or there’s a screen that goes over it,” said Ben Morabito.
“Some people just put tape over their license plates,” said Solomon Yang, who admits he’s thought about doing it to save money, especially when congestion pricing kicks in.
According to the Comptroller’s audit, the Department of Transportation’s Speed Camera Program is doing a good job overall, but there is room for improvement.
New York City Sheriff Anthony Miranda said his office is working to combat the problem.
“We do enforcement operations in the middle of the night, where we’ll seize 50 to 100 cars in an evening operation,” said Miranda. “And we do checkpoints throughout the day.”
In a statement to PIX11 News, the DOT wrote:
“NYC DOT’s Speed Camera Program saves lives by changing driving behavior, and by any account has been incredibly successful, with 65 percent of ticketed vehicles receiving only one or two tickets since the start of the program in 2014. This means drivers are traveling safer on our streets, which makes our communities and neighborhoods safer as well. We look forward to considering the Comptroller’s recommendations as we advance a future Request For Proposals to operate the program.”
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