Minister for Transport Eamon Ryan has announced the introduction of green ‘flash’ registration plates for zero emission vehicles. The green flash plates will identify a vehicle as zero emission, giving them unique visibility and promoting the green transition on our roads.
The tailored registration plates will look the same as existing plates, but have an added green ‘flash’ or stripe denoting the vehicle’s zero-emission status. The green flash will be on the right-hand side of the plate, mirroring the European Union blue stripe on the left side. The usual figures and county identifiers will remain unchanged.
Countries across Europe including Germany, Norway and the United Kingdom have similar arrangements, with plates on zero emission vehicles bearing ether a green flash, the letter ‘E’ for electric, or a green badge or border.
To be eligible for the green flash registration plate, the vehicle must emit zero emissions at the tailpipe. This includes full battery electric vehicles and, in the future, fuel cell hydrogen vehicles. All categories of vehicles such as cars, motorbikes, vans, buses and trucks which are zero emission at the tailpipe will be permitted to carry the new green ‘flash’.
There are now over 96 different battery electric vehicle models available in the Irish market and they continue to grow in range and in numbers. The green flash plate will clearly make the distinction between zero tailpipe emission vehicles, and other types.
The new registration plates will be introduced next year. This will allow the necessary legislative and technological amendments to be made.
The green ‘flash’ plates will not be mandatory. It will be at the discretion of dealerships and consumers whether to apply the new registration plate. For zero emission vehicles already on the roads, drivers will be able to ‘opt in’ and retrofit their vehicle with the new plate.
Minister Ryan said: “This initiative will help identify and highlight zero emission vehicles on our roads. It’s already standard in many other countries. It is just a mark or brand but it works really well. Drivers like it and it’s a great way of tracking the ongoing move to electric on our roads. It will allow businesses to show leadership on transport emissions and help us visualise our zero emission future.
“The new green ‘flash’ is another step in Ireland’s transition to electric and underlines our ongoing commitment to making that happen. This year alone, the Government has made over €115 million available to support the roll-out of electric vehicles and charging infrastructure. In the latest Budget, we have seen a suite of additional taxation measures across Benefit in Kind and Vehicle Registration Tax which aim to further incentivise the transition.”
