By Caitlin Brezinski

A new technology joins the Prince Albert police force

Sep 30, 2014 | 9:12 PM

The Prince Albert Police Service had a new licence plate recognition (LPR) technology on Tuesday.

Cst. Mike Ozar said the automatic system, provided by SGI, is a traffic safety enforcement tool meant to keep unregistered and suspended vehicles off the road.

Infrared lights are positioned on the vehicle to detect licence plates, which show up on the screen inside the vehicle.  The technology, said Ozar, is much more efficient because it allows the officers to detect more plates faster than typing them in manually. 

“We can get 10 plates in a 10-second period.  As fast as you can drive by them, it’ll recognize it and flash up on your screen,” he said.

In addition to being an enforcement tool, the technology could also be used to investigate different situations such as a car being stolen.

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“It takes a still picture of every licence plate that it reads, so in certain situations where if you needed a picture of a person in a vehicle … you could use it as an investigative purpose,” he said.

The Prince Albert police force has two infrared cameras in place on top of the vehicle but there can be up to six different cameras which can be placed anywhere.

Ozar said the technology has a far reach when detecting the plates and is accurate at alerting them of unregistered vehicles.

“If I’m parked on the side of road and there’s two lanes of traffic going the same direction I’m faced, it’ll pick up both lanes,” he said.

Ozar said this is something that drivers often overlook or disregard but the consequences are severe.  Unregistered vehicles face a fine of $580 and drivers of suspended vehicles will face an immediate court date.

Right now, there is one LPR in Prince Albert and 14 in the province.  SGI hopes to have more in place by next summer.

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On Twitter: @princealbertnow