Are there 1 and i in license plate numbers?
2 Answers
License plate numbers only include the digit 1, not the letter i. The main reason is that they are easily confused, so i license plates have been discontinued. Here is some additional information: According to the current Chinese motor vehicle license plate standard "GA36-2007" section 5.9.1, each digit of the serial number can use English letters individually, but the letters O and I among the 26 letters are not allowed. Additional details: 1. The first character of a license plate is a Chinese character, representing the abbreviation of the province where the vehicle is registered. 2. The second character is an English letter, representing the code of the prefecture-level city where the vehicle is located. The general rule is: A is the provincial capital, B is the second-largest city in the province, and C is the third-largest city.
As a veteran driver with over a decade of experience, I've seen all kinds of license plates. The number 1 is quite common in license plates, like the one on my family car which has a 1, and it's completely fine. However, the letter I is rarely seen, mainly because it looks too similar to 1 and can easily cause confusion. I remember a friend's license plate was once mistaken for having an I, leading to a registration error and causing a bit of trouble. When designing license plates, authorities usually skip letters like I to avoid confusion, especially in automatic recognition systems which are more sensitive to such issues. If you're curious about the reason, it's mainly for standardization and safety, to prevent misidentification. When selecting a plate, the DMV staff will help you avoid these letters. In short, 1 is common, while I is basically not used unless it's a special custom plate.
