Since the pandemic started up over a year ago, I haven’t done any air travel and have been driving to all business functions. Luckily all my work has been in The Northeast and within a reasonable driving distance of my home, though I often have six to eight hours of driving in a day. So, needless to say, I’ve had a lot of windshield time on interstates the last 12 months.
In this past year, I think I’ve counted perhaps three or four amateur radio license plates on vehicles, total. I’ve identified maybe three other vehicles that didn’t have amateur radio license plates, but looking at the antennas on the vehicles and deducing from bumper stickers and the driver, it was an amateur radio operator.
A decade or two ago I can remember seeing perhaps four or five amateur radio plates on a single eight hour trip alone. I know some people don’t get amateur radio license plates these days because of the relative ease of identifying the owner using a web search. I think you see this with the younger generation who is very Internet savvy and aware of the dangers of self-doxing by providing to much identifying information to the public. We still have a majority of older radio amateurs and with increasing numbers of licensees one would think we would see more amateur radio license plates on the road today.
Has anyone else noticed a decline in amateur radio plates in their neck of the woods?
This article was originally posted on Radio Artisan.
Radio Artisan 
I see just the opposite in this part of Florida. I am seeing ham plates everytime I go out. What puzzles me is I have no idea of who they are. The majority of them never check in to local nets, come up on repeaters, show up on our local club zoom meetings, or hear on any of the hf bands/modes.
73, Don W4CBS
I always considered in getting one but any smart vagrant could look up your call sign on FCC ULS and know that you are not home…
73
Alan, W3ISR