Phuket traffic chief sets sights on B30mn record licence plate auction

PHUKET: The Phuket Land Transport Office (PLTO) is hoping to raise a record 30 million baht from the annual Lucky Licence Plate Auction being held in Phuket Town this weekend.

The two-day event at the Phuket Merlin Hotel (map here) began today at 9:30am, with 301 licence plates to go to the highest bidders.

All licence plates to be auctioned – which must be fitted to private sedans with a capacity of fewer than seven persons – are designated with the Thai letters “Kor Mor” and have a color image of Phuket’s Promthep Cape as the background.

“The most highly sought-after plates, for which opening bids are set at 50,000 baht, are those with the same digit four times in succession,” PLTO Chief Terayout Prasertphol said.

Last year, the PLTO raised about 26mn baht. The highest bid was for plate “Gor Por” 9999, which was auctioned for 1.45mn baht (story here).

The PLTO has raised a total of 151,563,998 baht in the eight years that the auction has been held in Phuket, Mr Terayout explained.

The proceeds will go to a road safety fund operated by the head office of the Land Transport Department in Bangkok.

“The fund supports people permanently injured from road accidents, by providing them with things such as wheelchairs or prosthetic limbs, and helps fund road-safety awareness campaigns,” Mr Terayout said.

— Saran Mitrarat