Why Do Some New York License Plates Say 'Excelsior'?

New York is famous for its iconic imagery, from the city's skyline to steam rising from the roads and a lot more. Even New York's license plates are recognizable, including those that have the word 'Excelsior' across the bottom. While the word was the famous catchphrase of legendary Marvel Comics Chairman Emeritus Stan Lee, Excelsior is on New York license plates thanks to a 2019 design competition.

The contest's five final designs all included the word Excelsior and these plates were the ones that New Yorkers voted on. Of the 325,000 votes cast, the winning plate received about half. In addition to the word, the plate also featured some of the state's most familiar landmarks: The Statue of Liberty, Niagara Falls, a lighthouse on Long Island, a mountain range, and Manhattan's skyline. This design was a far cry from the state's previous yellow-and-blue plate, which was replaced by the new Excelsior version.

But Excelsior appears on more than just New York license plates, as it's also the state motto and is part of the state's Great Seal. The word itself is Latin for "Ever Upward," and it appears on the seal in a banner under the two female figures of Liberty and Justice. Between the figures in the center of the seal is a shield that contains a rising sun over a mountain range with two ships on the water, and an eagle spreading its wings over a globe at the very top.

New York's new Excelsior plates introduced in 2019 didn't last long until they were recalled by the state. The problem was connected to the plates' reflective elements, leading to the E-ZPass system's inability to properly scan the plates. E-ZPass is an electronic toll payment system that lets drivers automatically pay tolls when they go through equipped toll lanes. The problem was deemed to be a manufacturing defect, though drivers had not yet received the affected plates before the issue was discovered.

There was another controversy surrounding New York plates around the same time, as the state considered forcing drivers with license plates older than 10 years to replace them. This would cost drivers up to $45, a fee that many believed was too high, fueling a backlash to the proposed move. As a result, then-Governor Andrew Cuomo decided to stop the replacement program before it began, allowing drivers to keep their existing license plates.

As of this writing, New York drivers are still not required to switch over to an Excelsior plate when renewing their vehicle registration. If drivers want to change over, they can do so, either during the renewal window or outside of it, based on the situation. However, the state does require that the Excelsior plate be used under certain conditions, including when a new personalized plate is ordered, or when drivers apply for a replacement for a lost or stolen plate.