British Columbia Passenger License Plates
2001 - 2013

For 16 years, the "Flag Graphic" graced the front and rear of cars in British Columbia, and as the end of the series approached in 2001, collector's and aficionado's alike waited in suspense to see what ICBC would do. Would the venerable Flag finally be retired in favour of something a little fresher, a little more 21st century?
Alas, on June 18, 2001, the following Press Release was issued by ICBC:
B.C. drivers may soon notice a change in the letter/number configurations on passenger vehicle licence plates. Earlier this spring ICBC began issuing passenger licence plates beginning with three numbers, followed by three letters instead of the usual three letter/three number format. The reason for the change is simple: ICBC has run out of three letter/three number combinations.
ICBC considered the option of re-issuing previously assigned, terminated licence plate numbers but decided to continue its "one person/one time" policy for assigning licence plate numbers. This avoids potential duplication of licence plate numbers, ensuring the correct vehicle and vehicle owner come up on police computer screens during roadside stops and also minimizing the possibility of error when municipal by-law officers issue parking tickets.
Commercial, motorcycle and personalized (vanity) vehicle plates are not affected by the change.
The design was to be retained and the Flag given an extra lease on life! With the end of the series at KXK-999, the characters and digits would be flipped, although this time the series would start at AAA-000 instead of LAA-000 as had occurred in 1985.

2001 - 2003: Astrographics Dies

The Waldale Juggernaut comes to BC

After supplying the province with license plates for almost twenty years, Astrographics Limited of Surrey, B.C. lost a low-bid competition to Waldale Manufacturing Limited of Amherst, Nova Scotia as of November 2002.
The initial Waldale contract would run until 2007 and was subsequently renewed through 2013. Waldale now manufactured all types British Columbia plates, with the transition from Astrographics to Waldale dies on passenger plates officially beginning at 000-HGA. There are, however, exceptions to this change over date as Waldale dies have already been spotted on plates in the 000-HFE range, and Astrographics dies have been reported in the 000-JFG to 500-JFK range.
2003 - 2013


CLICK HERE
2012
In March of 2005, Waldale was acquired by the German firm Utsch AG (who had earlier acquired the Irwin-Hodson firm of Oregon in 2003), who now dominates the market for privately manufactured (i.e. not prison made) license plates in North America.

Issuing Mayhem!
Say what you will about the quality of the Astrogrpahics plates that characterise the first run of the Flag Graphic base (i.e. AAA-000), at least that company could be counted upon to manufacture and, along with ICBC, release the series in a predictable and sequential order.
The advent of Waldale, however, has seen the conventional issuing order completely disregarded for the second run of the Flag Graphic (i.e. 000-AAA), and this has proven to be a very disorientating ordeal for us ardent plate spotters.
For example, the following chart shows how the first eight million plates were issued, and if you understand how ICBC's ten character formula works, it all makes perfect sense:
Bloc
# of Plates
Serial
Dates Issued
1st
1 to 1,000,000
000-AAA to 999-KKJ
2001-2003
2nd
1,000,001 to 2,000,000
000-AAL to 999-KKX
2003-2005
3rd
2,000,001 to 3,000,000
000-ALL to 999-KXX
2006-2008
4th
3,000,001 to 4,000,000
000-ALA to 999-KXK
2005-2007
5th
4,000,001 to 5,000,000
000-LAA to 999-XKK
2008-2010
6th
5,000,001 to 6,000,000
000-LLA to 999-XXK
not yet issued
7th
6,000,001 to 7,000,000
000-LLL to 999-XXX
not yet issued
8th
7,000,001 to 8,000,000
000-LAL to 999-XKX
2008, 2010-
When the Flag Graphic series was flipped in June 2001, the decision was made to start with the letters "AAA" as opposed to "LAA", and, for the first two million plates, things progressed as one would expect.
However, in 2005, when the second bloc was exhausted, ICBC threw a curve ball and reversed the third and fourth blocs by issuing plates in the "ALA" range prior to the "ALL" range.
Following the completion of the "ALL" plates in 2008, ICBC did it again by issuing plates from the eighth bloc (i.e. "LAL"), but quickly corrected this by reverting back to plates in the "LAA" range.
It is not surprising that the Corporation is burning through plate series faster now than in the 1980s or 1990s given the increase in motor vehicles on BC roads. At this rate, we new base plate will be required no later than 2014, although the current "economic crisis" and associated plunge in new car sales being experienced in 2009 might buy the Corporation a little extra time.

The Single Plate Debate

With the election of a new provincial government in British Columbia in May of 2001, a New Era in the delivery of government services was ushered in. One of the new features was the creation of a "Waste Buster" web site where citizens could email in their complaints regarding un-necessary government spending. Apparently, the scrapping of front license plates in BC received enough attention via the site that the government opted to post an explanation of why it would not do away with the two plate system. The following is the official response as it appears on wastebuster.gov.bc.ca;

Suggestion:
Eliminate front licence plates

Response:
     ICBC has in the past reviewed the issue of removing the front plate requirement and determined that there were too many good reasons to keep the front plate that outweighed the production cost savings. The savings of eliminating the front plate would be less than might be expected because only a portion of the manufacturing costs are saved (the front plate accounts for much less than 1/2 the production costs). Because the ordering, inventory and distribution costs remain essentially unchanged, the overall savings would be around 1/10 of the total costs for the licence plate program.
     Although some other provinces have done away with the front licence plate, BC has not done so for a number of reasons. There is great benefit in that our highly reflective licence plates enhance road safety by making vehicles more visible at night when parked or driving without headlights. This is especially true in low light, drizzle or fog conditions so common in BC's coastal regions. Safer roads equate to less insurance claims resulting in lower insurance premiums.
     BC Law enforcement, crime prevention groups, and municipalities have supported the front licence plate requirement for reasons that include accident reconstruction, examining oncoming traffic while approaching a crime scene, identification of vehicles towing trailers, and looking for stolen vehicles to name just a few positive benefits.

"The Best Place on Earth" needs a Super, Natural license plate!

During the long, 25 year reign (and counting) of the "Flag Graphic" base plate, there have been precious few instances to give those of us who pay attention to license plates much hope that the design would ever be overhauled.
That the New Democratic Party (NDP) won election in 1991 and choose not to do away with the "Flag Graphic" - that most ubiquitous of Social Credit Party symbols - should have been a portend of (non)events to come.
The end of the "AAA-000" series in 2001 was another such a moment when it was hoped that the "Flag" would be retired in favour of something new and fresh. Alas, it was not to be as the "Flag" was given a renewed life under the "000-AAA" serial format.
However, some time in 2005 the Liberals undertook a "rebranding" of the province. The image shown below started to show up everywhere from highway signs promoting the various "Circle Routes"; the BC Government web site (and associated Departmental sites); to various advertising campaigns, and was generally accompanied by the "Best Place on Earth" slogan.

Naturally, this rekindled hope that a New Era was finally and truly upon us and that the logo of the now defunct Socreds would finally be removed from our license plates.
The excitement was palpable when the Olympic base issued in 2007 sported the new logo and symbol, while the new Consular base issued that same year also sported the new logo. Surely it would only be a matter of time before a new general issue would be announced!  And maybe there really is a Santa Clause...
As of early 2009, the "Flag" is still going strong (with over 12,000,000 having now been issued since 1985), while Tourism BC has also somehow resisted the "Best Place on Earth" onslaught and continues to promote British Columbia as a "Super, Natural" destination (UPDATE - in August 2009 the government rolled Tourism BC into the Ministry of Tourism!).
Moreover, Alberta recently announced that it was shelving plans to introduce a new plate design in the Wild Rose province due to the $12 million price tag - a cost that is now indenfensible in these trying economic times.
Extremely unsettling, however, was Alberta's announcement that it was adding an additional number to its existing serial format in order to prolong the life of a base plate that has also been in use since 1985. This is the same route being travelled by Washington State as it extends the life of its Mount Rainier design first introduced in 1987.
In the name of all that is good and great in this world, we implore ICBC to not even consider adding an additional letter, or number to the "Flag" series simply to prolong its life beyond the projected exhaustion of the "000-AAA" serial format sometime in 2013!  Please listen to me when I say that the "Flag" is tired, let it rest ...
.
As an aside, while we support the "Best Plate on Earth" slogan here at BCpl8s.ca as representing the most likely vehicle through which a new passenger base plate design will be delivered to this province, we also recognise that the slogan is considered repugnant, and down right un-Canadian in certain circles.
However, in terms of the commercial boosterism generally associated with license plates in North America, the slogan is about par for the course.
Take Utah for instance, it has been pedaling itself as having the "Greatest Snow on Earth" for decades, and, not to be outdone by British Columbia, New Mexico recently commenced a marketing campaign in which it declares itself to be "The Best Place in the Universe"!
While "The Best Place in the Universe" has yet to supplant "Land of Enchantment" as the slogan on New Mexico license plates, the success of the campaign could always change this.

The plate that never was ...
Okay, I am taking a little liberty with this particular sectional title as I understand neither ICBC or the Provincial government ever contemplated the production of a special license plate to mark British Columbia's supposed sesquicentennial (150th anniversary) in 2008.
So, to suggest that there may have existed such a plate, or even the idea for such a plate is, admittedly, somewhat misleading. Nevertheless, it does beg the question as to why not? Especially given the run-away success of the optional Olympic base (wherein, ironically, I believe lies the rub), as well as the occasional media reports related to the shortage of government funds being made available to the official "BC150 Secretariat".
Not that BC needs to follow anyone else's lead, as one of the few things that the Province could once upon be relied upon to promote on its license plates was important provincial anniversaries such the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Crown Colony of British Columbia in 1958, and the Canadian centennial in 1967.  
However, 2008 did see Alaska celebrate its 50th anniversary of Statehood through the issuance of a special license plate, while Minnesota legislator's toyed with the idea of issuing a plate in honour of their sesquicentennial of Statehood. Even Quebec, that conservative license plate bastion, came out with a promotional Euro-styled booster plate to mark the 400th anniversary of Quebec City (who, incidentally, was BC's main competitor for government funding in 2008).

The Minnesota situation is particularly interesting, and much more dire sounding in terms of funding availability than is the case in BC.  According to local media reports, the Minnesota Sesquicentennial Commission was operating at the beginning of 2008 with a bare-bones staff, and was expected to be out of money before Statehood Day.  The original $2 million budget had been slashed to $750,000 following a budget battle between lawmakers and the Governor.
The road to salvation for the land of 10,000 lakes was argued to be through the issuance of a specialty license plate, as Wisconsin raised $5 million by selling a Sesquicentennial plate in 1998, and Iowa raised about $4 million with its Sesquicentennial plate in 1996. Imagine what a similar type of specialty license plate in BC could have achieved.
Before moving on from this topic, it must be recorded that, despite our enthusiasm for a sesquicentennial plate, we here at BCpl8s.ca totally disagree with the provincial government perpetuating the Socred inspired version of history where the political entity we now know as British Columbia came into being in 1858.
Truth be told, BC150 is thirteen years premature, as "British Columbia" was not created until 1871 when BC was admitted into the Canadian Dominion.
Alternately, one could argue that 2016 is the more appropriate date as it was 1866 that the Crown Colony of Vancouver Island merged with the Crown Colony of British Columbia to form "British Columbia".  
That said, if we are to mark the beginning of European governance of the area that now comprises BC, then clearly the political proclamation of the Crown Colony of Vancouver Island in 1849 is the date that should be used.  
Just as with the "Beautiful" slogan that still adorns our license plates, it would seem that many other Socred creations have proven to be incredibly resilient!

Beautiful or Best? We are so confused ...
In the spirit of Puck Daddy's Hockey Jersey Fouls, we thought we would post this Frankenweiny passenger / Olympic licence plate combination. One assumes that this particular motorist prefers "The Best Place on Earth" slogan over the very dated "Beautiful British Columbia", but in the process of coming up with this political statement have probably put themselves afoul of the Motor Vehicle Act as the license plate no longer displays the jurisdiction of registration (but does include both government logos, so it shouldn't be too hard for a police officer to figure it out).

Virtual Security Threads
Starting in January 2011, BC passenger and truck plates began to display holographic images, or what is known in the industry as "virtual security threads". These holograms allow the supplier, 3M, to identify the year and batch of material that the particular sheeting was produced from.
Thanks to the good work of our friends over at DCplates.net, we know that the product name of this threading is "Ensure", while the 3M site advises that these threads "consists of a circular security and warranty image that repeats and runs vertically through the centre of the license plate. It is visible only when viewed head-on at about a 30 degree angle to horizontal. It 'disappears' from view at other angles.".

The image above is a generic example of the "virtual security thread" running through the middle of a license plate.
The image at left is of the "thread" on an actual BC license plate and which incorporates the "BC Mark" (i.e. mountain range & rising sun).
3M promotes the use of these holograms as a way to thwart counterfeiters, who are seen to be "a threat to public safety ... [and] rather than stealing a plate, sophistcaed criminals will go to the added effort of creating a counterfeit because there is a much lower risk of detection" (right!). Rather, it would seem to us that these holograms are more of a quality control measure that allow 3M to track the durability of materials over time.  
This particular plate would have been issued sometime between 2003 and 2005 (and judging by the base decal it was likely 2003) and appears to be showing signs of premature wear-and-tear. Note the protective sheeting is starting bubble and disintegrate. While this may specific to this particular plate as a result of something done by the vehicle owner, it could also be symptomatic of problems with 3M's sheeting. Should this happen again, the threads might be able to cast light on the reasons.
The more interesting aspect of these holograms is the code which, when deciphered, can actually reveal a few interesting details about a plate. The first character represents the facility at which the sheeting was manufactured; the second character indicates the last digit of the year in which the sheeting was made (and spells out the word "COMPLAINTS"); the third character indicates the month (and spells out the word "STENOGRAPHIC"); while the last character indicates the week of the month. This system has a natural cycle of ten years before it resets:
First Character
Letter
Facility
B
Brownwood,
Texas
Second Character
Letter
Year
C
1
O
2
M
3
P
4
L
5
A
6
I
7
N
8
T
9
S
0
Third Character
Letter
Month
S
Jan.
T
Feb.
E
March
N
April
O
May
G
June
R
July
A
Aug.
P
Sept.
H
Oct.
I
Nov.
C
Dec.
Fourth Character
Letter
Week
1
1st
2
2nd
3
3rd
4
4th
5
5th
With this information, we are able to figure out that the sheeting used on the BC plate shown above was manufactured at the 3M facility in Brownwood, Texas in the first week of February, 2010 - or almost a full 12 months before it was issued.
This is a rather momentous change for people who collect BC plates as it will potentially allow for a more accurate identification of when a plate was issued (which at the moment appears to be approximately a year after the sheeting is manufactured, but we will likely be able to refine this over the coming years). For purists, it will now be easier to determine who is re-decal'ing old plates to make them potentially more attractive for resale or trade.


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