The Land Transportation Office or LTO announced that starting this October 2009, they will be adding RFID (Radio Frequency Identification System) tags on motor vehicles in the country. These tags will be used as a revolutionary way to store vehicle information designed to be easily accessible and readable through special scanners in real time. It’s estimated cost will be around Php 350 for each vehicle registered. RFID is a new technology that works like bar codes. The information on the tags are transmitted through radio waves and read by RFID scanners. This works similar to those tags you see on shirts of most apparel stores these days.
This technology will basically allow the LTO to effectively study traffic patterns, monitor and improve traffic conditions specially on areas with constant heavy traffic. Traffic violators can now be easily apprehended and “colorum” public utility vehicles can now be easily barred from the streets. It would now be easier to identify stolen vehicles using these radio frequency tags as well. Another advantage pointed out by LTO is that it will also lessen air pollution by being able to easily ban smoke belchers from the road.
I can just imagine an LTO vehicle with big RFID scanners on the sides and sweeping the streets looking for traffic violators or stolen vehicles parked on roadsides. A lot of people are actually quite concerned about possible security risks on this technology. The possibity of obtaining private information and even tracking you while you take your morning cup of tea is a bit intimidating to some. However, RFID only has an effective distance of about 3 meters and does not function like a GPS does, so this should be a relief. This kind of technolgy is infact already implemented in the United States, Japan and other countries.
Like what Secretary Arturo Lomibao said, “The RFID technology will revolutionize land transportation in the Philippines. This is a great first step in putting order in our streets”. (People’s Journal)
