License plate recognition cameras to be placed in Jersey Village
License plate recognition cameras to be placed in Jersey Village
The cameras will be placed in stationary locations around the city – similar to traffic cameras – and use optical character recognition software, or OCR, to see the characters on license plates, said Jersey Village Police Chief Eric Foerster. Initially, 48 cameras will be active, but he said cameras can be moved, added, or subtracted at any time.
Foerster said the cameras use solar technology and smaller batteries as well as wireless LTE connectivity to keep the cameras portable and storing data. Cameras can read, record and store license plates in their system.
Foerster and several council members said the license plate cameras were discussed in the past, but were not pursued because the cost exceeded $1 million.
Now that the cost of the 48 cameras, installation, maintenance, warranty and wireless connectivity for three years is $312,000, Foerster believes the project is overall cost effective.
Foerster said other cities nearby have been implementing automatic license plate recognition cameras.
The cameras will be used to point officers in the right direction, rather than relying on the cameras.
