Aggressive Driver Imaging System

[Adis]

Aggressive Driver Imaging System (ADIS)

[Dr Mordrid]

It's a bit more complex mobile version of the stationary systems that judges and privacy advocates from both political parties in the US have been hammering for years as an invasion of privacy.

They do have a point given our Constitutions ban on unreasonable searches, which the Supreme Court has often interpeted as including various means of electronic surveillance. Just this last term they banned the use of infrared cameras and sensors to randomly search homes for the high heat loads associated with indoor marijuana farming.

Many US cities have dropped the stationary units because of the hullabaloo and the expense of defending them in court. This thing will be more expensive to acquire and I'm sure even more expensive to defend once all the court challenges start, and they will start

Dr. Mordrid

[gt40]

Looks similar to the photo radar that we had - until the new goverment was voted in.
People saw it as an invasion of privacy - you got a picture of the whole car.
Suddenly people were getting pictures of them and their grilfriend/boyfriend sent to their homes.
"dear, who is this other person in the car with you?"

[Sciascia]

We have a similar thing here in Germany, you get a picture sent to you, complete with stupid expressions while singing, picking your nose, etc... I have a friend who's husband is a cop over here and said that they had a picture of a guy doing about 190 km/hr while sitting backwards to moon the camera. That is crazy!!! I don't mind it so much, the only thing that makes me mad is that it takes so long to get the ticket, I had 3 tickets from the same spot when I got my new job. I stopped speeding through there (stupid anyway, 50Km/h on a 4 lane road with nothing around for miles) but I had already gotten dinged two more times before the first one got to me.

[guylauten]

I drive for a living, 40 to 50 hrs a week. I am constantly having my life and limbs risked by some idiot running a red light or going too fast for the road. I welcome any way of stopping these selfish jerks. As far as invasion goes, if you don't want to be caught doing something stupid in public, how about not doing it in public? Like, DUH!

[Dave Lawton]

Here in the UK we have plenty of fixed speed cameras. My 60 miles round trip to work goes through eight of them. Of course we all know where they are so everyone slows down before them and accelerate afterwards.

To combate this there are many mobile units as well, their trick is to place one just after a fixed one when you think you are safe to speed again.

The authorities are becoming even more devious. On our motorways (interstates) they have licence plate recognition cameras several miles apart which can work out your average speed. The violation ticket is in the post before you get home.

My answer to all this, obey the speed limits.

[gt40]

To be honest, I loved photo radar. You could spot the van from a mile away.

[Brian Ellis]

Much cheaper is to have a plethora of clearly labelled police patrol cars. If I go to Nicosia (c. 30 km of highway), I can bet on seeing at least 3 of them tootling along at 80 km/h (limit 100 km/h). Believe me, it damps excessive speeding, aggressive driving, not wearing seat belts, using mobile phones, visible exhaust fumes, poor loading and overloading and many other offences without the use of high-tech devices costing an arm and a leg and which are usually arguable, anyway.

In addition, there is often at least one police car, clearly marked with blue light flashing, parked in the emergency strip in the middle of a straight stretch, with a tripod-mounted or hand-held radar. As these are usually visible from a km back, one would think that they never would have a "customer": don't you believe it! They usually have one or two cars stopped in front of it, and this despite a 10 km/h tolerance on true speed. Personally, I think these guys should be booked for driving without due care and attention, as well as speeding.

For the moment, we do not have camera radars or traffic light monitors, but there is a tender out to purchase 400 units. The legal base has been established and it was decided that a frontal pix is required to identify the driver ("I don't know who had my car that day, it may have been my wife, brother, either of my sons or a neighbour"). It was also decided to keep the photos in a secure place and not send them to the registered car owner with the summons (too many mistresses in high places!!!). They will be produced only if the case is disputed in court. This seems sensible.

[GNEP]

In Derbyshire they started putting cardboard cutouts of police cars on bridges over the motorways so you would see the silhouettes (sp?). It worked for a while at least...

[gt40]

The other downfall of the Ontario system was the owner of the vehicle was charged, regardless of the driver, even if the picture
clearly showed the owner was not driving.
the up-side - no demerits were issued.

[Tjalfe]

I am wondering when they start giving out speeding tickets on the 407ETR, as they already have the time you enter and leave the highway, and the distance between those points..

(407ETR = automated toll highway, just north of Toronto)

[Dr Mordrid]

Originally posted by Brian Ellis
Much cheaper is to have a plethora of clearly labelled police patrol cars.

Here you sometimes see empty police cars parked in high traffic areas. That or an empty car with a uniformed mannequin sitting in the drivers seat.

This worked for a while, but one day last summer some local jokers got the cars door open, put a bra & panties on the cop mannequin and "posed" him on the hood of the cruiser

Haven't seen "him" since....

Dr. Mordrid

[gt40]

Originally posted by tjalfe
I am wondering when they start giving out speeding tickets on the 407ETR, as they already have the time you enter and leave the highway, and the distance between those points..

(407ETR = automated toll highway, just north of Toronto)

They have already stated that they will NOT give out tickets based on this info.
However, it's rare for the government to go back on their word.

[Tjalfe]

Good to hear.. I hope they won't go back on their words!