Cape Town’s recently-introduced tech-led highway patrol unit is seeing the city make some gains over law-breakers in main arterial routes.
The city released stats at the weekend, revealing it has made 416 arrests and recorded 28 870 offences in the first four months of operation.
Of these, 56% were offences committed by drivers of public transport vehicles, according to a statement.
Among the arrests were 339 for driving under the influence, 25 for reckless and negligent driving, eight on multiple counts of driving while intoxicated/reckless and negligent driving and other transgressions, and seven for the possession of drugs, it adds.
Says executive mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis: “Our new tech-led highway patrol unit is making encouraging progress in making our roads safer, with 400 arrests in just four months. Safety technology investments underpin this success, with dash-cams and automated number-plate recognition (ANPR) technology fitted in their vehicles.
“Our officers can automatically track motorists with outstanding warrants, spot duplicate or cloned licence plates, and identify stolen vehicles or those used in a crime. This has led to 15 arrests in the new unit’s short lifespan for possession of stolen or hijacked vehicles.
“It is clear that a technology-based approach to crime-fighting multiplies the effectiveness of our officers. This unit is a part of the shift towards a 24-hour presence, which we are steadily expanding in key parts of the city.”
The city’s tech-led highway patrol unit forms part of the mayoral priority programme aimed at making Cape Town safer by expanding safety resources and technology investments.
The unit, which consists of 30 operational members and two administrative support staff, uses vehicles fitted with dash-cams and ANPR technology, and the staff have body-cams.
The ANPR dash-cam system assists officers with their enforcement work by automatically tracking motorists with outstanding warrants, identifying duplicate or cloned licence plates, alerting them to stolen vehicles or vehicles that have been identified as having been involved in criminal acts, and more.
For example, on 29 December, the highway patrol officers used ANPR to determine that a white Toyota Yaris had false number plates fitted. Also, on 25 November, officers stopped a red Toyota Conquest after the vehicle was flagged as stolen by the officers' onboard ANPR system.
“These successes underscore the importance of investing not just in more visible policing resources, but also the accompanying technology to make our streets safer,” states alderman JP Smith, mayoral committee member for safety and security.
“It not only allows our officers to deal with incidents more swiftly, but also prevents unnecessary stops, as they’re able to sharpen their focus, thanks to the ANPR technology.
“The city is continuing its investment into resourcing the Safety and Security Directorate and ensuring our efforts are in line with international standards, in the interest of public safety, and the highway patrol unit is but one example of this.”
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