Which Hudson Valley Drivers Will Be Required to Get New Plates?

Some Hudson Valley drivers will still have to shell out big bucks for those ugly new license plates.

On Wednesday New York State drivers were relieved to find out that Governor Cuomo had officially backed off of his plan to force drivers to replace their old plates with newer ones that would be easily read by the new EZ Pass system. The swap would have cost drivers $25 for the new plates and an additional $20 if they wanted to keep their same number.

Not surprisingly, the idea was universally criticized by drivers in New York State who called the plan a "cash grab." According to the Democrat & Chronicle, the plan would have forced 3 million drivers with plates that are over 10 years old to purchase the new ones, generating $75 million for the state. Cuomo argued that if the new EZ Pass system is to work properly, residents must have plates that are not faded out.

New York State

After a poll was released on Tuesday showing that 60% of New Yorkers opposed the plan, administrators announced that they would be backing off. Instead of mandating that everyone with old plates replace them, anyone with license plates over 10 years wil be able to get them inspected. If they are, indeed, faded and unable to be read by EZ Pass then they will still need to be replaced at the cost of the car owner.

Unfortunately, the older New York State plates have been known to crack and peel. If yours has any wear and tear, it's likely that you'll still need to cough up the money to replace the plate or risk getting a ticket.

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