Ghostbusters with a twist: Electronic chalking is the new technology that is dishing out the law.
Be warned parking offenders. The invisible hand of the law will catch you out with the roll-out of new licence plate recognition (LPR) technology, also known as ‘electronic chalking’.
After a successful trial earlier in the year, parking inspectors will now be armed with the technology to crack down particularly on on-road parking, rather than in outdoor car parking areas where foot patrols will still operate.
LPR is a vehicle-mounted camera system which allows parking officers to capture and record images of parked vehicles to determine if they have overstayed the maximum time limit, parked unlawfully, or are dangerously parked.
Minister for Regulatory Services Gordon Ramsay said similar technology had been used in other jurisdictions and found to be effective in detecting unsafe and illegal parking.
“Particular areas of focus will be roadside parking around our schools and around businesses in our town centres,” Mr Ramsay said.
“These areas often have a high volume of pedestrian traffic, and ensuring crossings and visibility – such as through double parking – are not obscured, is critical for safety.
“Preventing overstaying in parking areas near businesses is also central to supporting ‘churn’ or turnover in parking, so more customers can access these areas.”
He said that during the trial, Access Canberra parking inspectors in most cases issued warnings to Canberrans found to be parked illegally or overstaying their parking.
“This provided an opportunity to inform and educate the community in key areas where it will be used. Access Canberra will now commence the issuing of infringements from this week, with the technology playing an important role in supporting safe parking,” he said.
LPR cameras could inspect 30 kilometres of roadside parking per hour compared to 1-2 kilometres per hour by parking inspectors on foot.
“Drivers identified as parking illegally through LPR will be posted an infringement notice, while those detected by inspectors on foot will continue to receive an infringement notice in an envelope on their windscreen,” Mr Ramsay said.
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