The KwaZulu-Natal Road Traffic Inspectorate (RTI) yesterday put its experimental average speed determination (ASD) system into effect on a stretch of highway between Durban and Pietermaritzburg.
ASD measures average speed based on a pair of licence plate recognition (LPR) units and issues a ticket automatically via the mail.
The system can also alert authorities if it detects vehicles associated with fugitives from justice, suspects in criminal cases or wanted persons. It can also check passing traffic for stolen vehicles, or those with expired licences or false number plates.
The LPR-based speed measurement system has several advantages over other techniques. This includes the fact that the violation detection is not based on a singular point, but rather on the length of the route, so it slows down the traffic along the entire route rather than in specific points which are quickly known to drivers, says RTI director Johan Schnell.
Additional advantages are that the system is automatic and easy to set up, provides the evidence in images, covers all lanes and operates 24 hours a day, using invisible infrared illumination.
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