The blue sea is not to blame.

(Baonghean) - For the past few days, there has been much debate about whether or not to abolish the green and red license plates so that both public and private vehicles have license plates of the same color. It seems the debate is still ongoing, with neither side winning, and both sides have valid points.

Actually, this story dates back many years, but it has recently "resurfaced" thanks to the opinion of a functional official from Lao Cai province at the 2016 National Traffic Safety Conference. This official argued that if all vehicles on the road had license plates of the same color, it would eliminate inequality in handling traffic violations.

Despite the "no entry" sign, the driver of the government vehicle brazenly drove into the area. (Illustrative image: Internet)

The above opinion is not without basis. It is true that drivers of vehicles with blue or red license plates who violate traffic regulations are often overlooked or given lighter penalties by authorities (traffic police, traffic inspectors) compared to drivers of vehicles with white license plates committing the same offense. A traffic police officer who worked for many years in the Traffic Police Department of Nghe An Province said that traffic police officers are somewhat... hesitant to take such action.

The reason is simple: those driving vehicles with blue license plates are often officials and civil servants with extensive connections, so they frequently ask for favors. Some even display a condescending attitude towards law enforcement officers. Indeed, while some drivers and passengers in vehicles with blue or red license plates have self-respect and strictly adhere to traffic safety regulations, many drivers treat these license plates as a kind of "pass." On the road, they feel like they are the most powerful people in the world.

Based on the above situation, many opinions (including some traffic police officers) suggest that it would be best if both public and private vehicles had the same license plate color. Only then would equality be achieved on the roads. Any vehicle found violating traffic rules should be dealt with, regardless of who it is!

That's not entirely true! The long-standing distinction in license plate colors for government vehicles, military vehicles, and private vehicles makes traffic management easier. Especially in terms of clearly and easily monitoring civil servants using government vehicles. For example, at temples, pagodas, or other "sensitive" locations, would any official dare bring a vehicle with a blue or red license plate? Not to mention, removing license plate colors could lead to other negative consequences. Furthermore, even with a single license plate color, many civil servants would still find ways to avoid being penalized by authorities if they wanted to!

According to an expert in this field: "The purpose of regulating license plate colors is not to classify vehicles as priority or non-priority. Except for vehicles with special duties on the road, such as fire trucks, ambulances, dike maintenance vehicles, military vehicles, and police vehicles on emergency duty, which are given priority by law, all other types of vehicles, regardless of license plate color, are treated equally and must comply with the law."

Clearly, the issue isn't the color of the license plate; what matters is the awareness of traffic safety laws among the drivers and the responsibility of those handling traffic violations on the road.

Viet Long