Cherished Number Plates News

Police to map millions of journeys using number plate recognition

19 September 2008

Police intend to map millions of car journeys and keep them on a national database for five years. Roadside cameras across the country will capture the exact movements of 50million licence plates every day in this new project.

Police officers have been encouraged to 'fully and strategically exploit' the database to reconstruct the whereabouts of drivers at a particular moment for use in investigations and in disputed fines. Questions will be raised about the length of time details are being kept on file and the apparent lack of guidance about who might be allowed access to the information.

The operation uses automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) cameras to 'read' the time and location of all vehicles on the road. This new announcement of keeping hold of records for a considerable amount of time comes at a time when discs and files containing thousands of people’s details keep getting mislaid.

Thousands of CCTV cameras across the country have been converted to read ANPR data, capturing people's movements in cars on motorways, main roads, airports and town centres. Mobile cameras have been installed in patrol cars and unmarked vehicles parked by the side of roads. Police helicopters have been equipped with infrared cameras that can read licence plates from 610 metres (2,000ft) away!

In 2005, the government invested £32million ponds to develop the ANPR data-sharing programme after police found that road traffic cameras could be used for counter-terrorism and everyday criminal investigations. Senior police officers have said they intend the database to be integrated into 'mainstream policing' ie. not solely relied upon to catch criminals. The system is expected to be fully operational in around four months time in areas on London.