Victoria Police will be able to keep a closer watch on dangerous drivers with new road safety technology rolling out across Victoria Police’s highway patrol fleet.
Minister for Police and Emergency Services Lisa Neville today joined the road policing command to unveil the first highway patrol vehicle fitted with Automatic Number Plate Recognition and in-car video technology.
Automatic Number Plate Recognition and in-car video recording technology will significantly boost Victoria Police’s ability to get dangerous drivers and vehicles off the roads, scanning up to 2500 number plates an hour. The cameras will check for unlicensed drivers, unregistered or stolen vehicles, drivers with interlock conditions, and motorists with outstanding warrants.
The Automatic Number Plate Recognition will also play an important role in helping Victoria Police identify offenders using stolen cars and assist in solving fuel theft. The in-car video technology will allow the highway patrol to record audio and video footage of road policing
activities, including roadside intercepts.
The high-quality recording can be used as evidence in court hearings and will help protect police members through the public’s awareness that they are being filmed. The technology will be installed across 38 highway patrol vehicles by the middle of the year, with the full rollout to be completed in 2021. The first vehicle will be based in Bendigo.
The roll out is backed by the Andrews Labor Government’s $2 billion Community Safety Statement commitment to install Automatic Number Plate Recognition technology across 221 highway patrol vehicles. The Labor Government continues to deliver new technology for Victoria Police, with smart devices and body-worn cameras being deployed to our frontline police and Protective Services Officers, and a state-of-the art intelligence
system that is helping police catch serious and recidivist criminals.
Ten new state-of-the-art alcohol and drug testing buses are also being delivered as part of a $15 million boost from the Government to replace Victoria Police’s ageing fleet.
