Massachusetts’ department of transportation this week said that special license plates with a silhouette of a green car with a plug on the back will be available for drivers of hybrids, battery-electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids.
Massachusetts is the second state (OK, it’s technically a commonwealth) in the U.S. to distribute specially designed license plates for alt-fuel vehicles (Hawaii was the first). The so-called Electric Vehicle Plates won’t cost any extra (see the Mass DOT’s statement here), even for hybrids.
Officials say the new plates are about more than vanity or green cred. They actually argue that, with some alt-fuel cars looking just like their gas-powered counterparts, the plates let emergency respondents know that the car is alt-fuel and may need to be turned off differently to minimize safety risks. So for all of you folks using your Nissan Leaf to ghost-ride the whip on Comm Ave, you’ll soon have that little extra something going for you.
