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New Speed Cameras Catch You From Space
A new kind of speed camera that uses satellites to measure average speed over long distances is being tested in Britain. The "Speedspike" system combines plate reading technology with a global positioning satellite receiver to calculate average speed between any two points in the area being monitored. From the article: "Details of the trials are contained in a House of Commons report. The company said in its evidence that the cameras enabled 'number plate capture in all weather conditions, 24 hours a day.' It also referred to the system's 'low cost' and ease of installation." I can't wait to see the episode of MythBusters where they try to avoid getting a speeding ticket from a satellite.
The AA said it would watch the system “carefully” but it did not believe there was anything sinister. “It is a natural evolution of the technology that is out there,” a spokesman said.
Ones "Natural evolution" is another's slippery slope.
RIP America
July 4, 1776 - September 11, 2001
The cameras are here on earth. They're just synchronized using GPS so the system can tell how long a vehicle takes to go from one checkpoint to the next.
Data sheet
How can I believe you when you tell me what I don't want to hear?
Are you kidding?
1) find the GPS receiver .50 Desert Eagle semi-automatic pistol
2) shoot GPS receiver with
3) write a letter to Gordon Brown telling him to fuck off
The mythbuster episodes about speed cameras are horribly boring, since you know from the start that if they were to find something that actually works and is feasible, they would not be allowed to air it.
Nonsense. Fines for speeding will simply be increased to about £1,000,000. It'll pay for itself in no time.
This isn't about speeding tickets. This is about creating a nationwide tracking system for Britain's highways. If they have cameras that can recognize license plates along Britain's highways, with all the information from all the cameras aggregated in one database, do you think they won't give the police access to this information to help track criminals?
Given the recent history in Britain, it's a safe bet that the police will have immediate warantless access to this information, and thus the ability to track all the cars in Britain. I'm not sure this is completely a bad thing, but there are certainly some significant privacy concerns at play here. What if police officers decide to abuse this information? What sort of checks are in place to make sure it's only used for legitimate purposes? I could be wrong, and they might not be giving police access to the camera data, but, given the recent history, I would be shocked if they weren't.
They fixed this in law. The ticket is sent to the registered keeper of the vehicle. If the registered keeper wasn't driving, they have to say who was. If they don't, they get prosecuted under section 172 of the Road Traffic Act 1988 - "Failing to provide Driver Identity".
Will rain fade make so you can speed in the rain and not get a ticket?
Only in a real heavy downpour, and you need to be flying (at least 120 KPH). Be careful not to slow down for "obstacles" such as turns and bumps, or they'll read your plate. Let us know how it works out.
It is dangerous to be right when the government is wrong.
I'm convinced that the only way to reduce crime and foster a positive relationship between the police and citizens is to have cops on the beat, walking the streets. This way they're forced to interact with people. Having them speed by in patrol cars, and even worse sit back at headquarters while cameras do the work only increases antagonism amongst the people and make it easier to the police to be abusive. You're not going to have a vested interest in someone if there's no personal interaction.
Couple this with governments harboring some authoritarian tendencies and you're looking at real problems. Although I'm sure some will strongly disagree I'm convinced this is the general tendency for socialist governments. I'm not talking about socialism in principle, I'm talking about the tendencies more socialist nations have. Inevitably this attitude arises in government where they're convinced they're the caretakers of the people. They know better than their citizens and need to protect them. This tendency is exhibited in everything from protecting us from terrorists to reducing salt in our diets for our own good. And too often it's too far reaching and misguided. But it frequently it even becomes a necessity. Take government healthcare, if it becomes expensive treating people for a particular preventable condition you can guarantee that the action that causes the problem will be banned.
So I'm not surprised by these totalitarian tendencies. And, especially in this case, it's hard to argue that the UK shouldn't be doing this. It's for our safety that we shouldn't be allowed to speed, isn't it? Of course, when there's a chance for the state to increase revenue, especially with minimal effort on their part, you can't seriously expect them to not jump at the chance.
Speed limits and speeding tickets are a huge scam. They are mostly in place to generate revenue, not improve safety.
Speed limits should be abolished, and police officers merely told to pull over people who are driving recklessly. This would improve safety and eliminate some of the antagonism people have towards the police.
I was recently ticketed for doing 56 in a 40 zone. The problem is this 40 zone stops at the bottom of a highway offramp. I would have had to slam on the brakes to get from 70 (highway speed) to 40 in the amount of distance I was given to do it. This might have caused me to get rear-ended. Yet there was a speed trap just in front of the end of the ramp. There was hardly any traffic. I wasn't being unsafe. Yet they stopped me anyway.
They should go after the kids who do 90MPH in a 40 residential neighborhood with straight pipes on their cars making noise at 3AM. But there's not enough money in that.
Today started like any other day, I get up and go to the shower, turn on the hot and cold taps and step in, only to be greeted by a blast of ICE COLD water. The shock of it is almost as jarring as the fact that the Google energy efficiency package on my house has never failed before. I turn off the water and try the sink. It's only has cold water as well. I think, no big deal, and go to the kitchen to get a cup of coffee and get ready for work, but my coffee pot has an error sign that reads "SLOW DOWN." I sit back and think, the KCup machine in my kitchen has produced a perfect cup of coffee for years, and I that is when it hits me that something is very wrong.. At that exact second my phone beeps, I have a text message. YOU WERE SPEEDING YESTERDAY! THE COMPUTER IN YOUR CAR IS VALUABLE! DO NOT RISK IT'S LIFE! IF YOU DO YOU WILL GET NO COFFEE OR HOT WATER EVER AGAIN! YOURS! SKYNET!
Then it hits me, the machine revolution has not only started, but they won. They can cut off the hot showers with only a thought, but I can't shut off my solar, wind, and geothermal powered home without shutting off the universe. Man no longer rules.
We are the Borg...
As an old photointerpreter from the Vietnam era, and a fanatic regarding aerial photography, I can assure you that civilian satellite-based cameras do not have the resolution to read license plates. There was once a concept of "infinite resolution film", but that was always theoretical and, if you think about it, could never be accomplished. As was said above, the cameras are earth-based. Only the speed computation using the GPS system is satellite-based.
Duplicate the license (could use a photocopier).
Pass a speed camera at point "A".
Have your friend then pass the other camera several miles away a couple seconds later, giving you an apparent speed of several hundred miles per hour.
Do this several times. Then speed as much as you want after that since you have a history of the cameras grossly mis measuring your speed.
She was like chocolate when she drank... semi-sweet at first and then increasingly bitter.