Fancy swapping your plastic vehicular permission slip for an electronic one? NSW drivers could find themselves in a few years’ time pulling out their smartphones rather than their wallets when asked for ID, if the state government survives this month’s election.
According to Ben Grubb over at The Age, the idea is being considered by the NSW state government, currently helmed by Premier Mike Baird. The article mentions that savings of “tens of millions of dollars” are possible, though it’d take four years for the transition to take place.
Dominic Perrottet, NSW’s Minister for Finance and Services, provided the following explanation for the proposal:
“Customers are doing more and more transactions on their smartphones,” Mr Perrottet said. “From cafes to banks, businesses are offering customers the opportunity to access their services, loyalty programs and payment systems through smartphone apps.
“While the private sector has shifted to digital, the NSW government must do the same.”
Even then, regular drivers wouldn’t be the first recipients; apparently, other “common licences” such as those for fishing and boats, would be handled first. They also wouldn’t be mandatory and those preferring the feel of a regular licence would be catered for.
Would you opt for a digital licence? I’m not sure my wallet could handle the jealousy.
[The Age]
Image: Pawel Loj / Flickr, licensed under Creative Commons 2.0