Erneute Reform geplant: Millionen Autos mit Heimatkennzeichen unterwegs

A renewed plan to reintroduce regional car number plates is gaining traction. Since 2012, local municipalities and city districts have been issuing additional letter combinations for vehicle registration plates, leading to the current tally of nearly 7 million automobiles, motorcycles, and trailers carrying the 336 revived "homeplate" number plates.

The MO Moers plate leads the pack with over 128,000 instances. In total, around 59 million vehicles in Germany sport a diverse array of over 800 different number plates. The revived number plates evoke a sense of home for many Germans, according to study author Ralf Bochert. He explains, "The vehicle registration plate and the individuality it provides represent an identity connection that matters to many people."

The federal council may greenlight even more granular number plates if additional municipalities with at least 20,000 residents step forward. The regional chamber endorsed this proposal at the request of Hesse and Lower Saxony and forwarded it to the federal government for implementation. It remains unclear whether and when the federal government will follow through.

Currently, there is no separate registration district required. Historically, the reintroduction has primarily involved resurrecting former number plates that lapsed due to administrative reforms. However, restrictions have emerged, such as the necessity of establishing a new independent vehicle registration district. These plans, according to the Hochschule study, will rely on data from the Federal Motor Transportation Authority.

The reintroduction of former local number plates has enjoyed sustained popularity in numerous regions since 2012.