[imagesource: Wikimedia Commons]

The City of Cape Town is really revving up road safety and security with hi-tech equipment.

The latest addition is a new Highway Patrol Unit fitted into traffic patrol vehicles and equipped with Automated Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) dash cameras. In addition, body cams will be worn by officers.

The unit will assist traffic enforcement and motorists, responding to incidents detected through the Freeway Management System cameras while out patrolling.

The tech will be used to patrol the main arterial routes in the city 24/7 and assist officers in doing their jobs.

This means tracking motorists with outstanding warrants and identifying duplicate or clone licence plates. The ANRP will also automatically alert officers to stolen vehicles or vehicles that have been identified as used in a commission of a crime.

Remember, a warrant for arrest is given after a traffic fine is not paid in time, so it is not the same thing as a traffic fine, per se. Anyway, you’d be better off paying your fines to avoid a warrant for arrest and then getting nailed on the highway coming home from work.

Per IOL, the tech will be implemented on the N2 highway at Hospital Bend and Mew Way during peak hours. It will respond to any incidents that may affect the flow of traffic or public safety.

Cape Town Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis said this new cutting-edge crime-fighting technology is an investment to make “every resident feels safer in Cape Town”:

“This unit also signals the first shift to a 24-hour Traffic Service operation in Cape Town. And the inclusion of technology highlights our focus on innovation in crime fighting to make our Officers more effective in their work.

The tech has been made ready at the perfect time, ahead of the festive season.

There are plans to double the number of units in the city by the next financial year, which means there really won’t be anywhere to run.

[source:iol]