Quote:
"what's that monstrous yellow thing on the back"
That is the object of traffic cameras...
It's worse than than that... one of the reasons the bloody things have to be so big over here in the UK is ANPR!
As a vehicle passes through an ANPR (Automatic Number Plate Recognition) camera, it takes an image of the number plate. Those details are then fed into a system which checks them against sources such as the Police National Computer (PNC), Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA), Local Force Intelligence systems and motor insurers databases. If the number plate is matched to one of the sources, the ANPR equipment will sound an alert.
Vehicles which have sounded an alert will then be stopped by intercept team officers for further investigation. Unlicensed or uninsured vehicles are likely to be seized on the spot by ANPR equipped officers.
ANPR cameras are located in mobile units (vans), in Roads Policing patrol cars, at dedicated fixed sites and via Closed Circuit Television (CCTV) schemes in urban areas. Latest scheme in Essex involves ANPR from a helicopter that can read a plate from 2000 feet, run the checks and radio ahead for intercept.
It's tempting to now list some of the terrible crimes (especially in the press recently) that seem to go ignored by the authorities, but i won't. 
Last edited by British_Steel; 12/02/2008 8:00 PM.
