Posted on 04/22/2010 11:48:48 AM PDT by James C. Bennett
As though cameras on top of every traffic light weren't bad enough already: there's now a trial run of satellites that will catch you speeding, over a several-block range, from hundreds of miles up. Hope for clouds, I guess?
The SpeedSpike system is being tested at two locations in London, and works a little differently than your typical trap: cameras on the ground are assisted by satellites that are capable of calculating your average speed between two points. Which to me just means a lot of speeding, then going very, very slowly, then speeding, and so on:
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.
The system could be used for "main road enforcement for congestion reduction and speed enforcement", and could help to "eliminate rat-runs" and cut speeds outside schools, it added. It could also reduce the need for speed humps.
So much for hoping for clouds. Maybe a stray meteor, then? [Telegraph UK via Jalopnik]
This has pretty much been done on toll roads for decades albeit not with gps.......just a clock stamp on a toll ticket. Ya get from point A to B too fast ya get a ticket ! Was done on the indiana and will rogers toll roads in the 60’s at least.
This is nothing but speed cameras with their clocks synchronized by....
wait for it....
The Global Positioning System!
The GPS satellites are used only for a precise measurement of time, so that the average speed between two points can be calculated dividing the distance by the time interval that elapsed.
As a bonus, they could use the GPS positions of the two locations to measure the distance between them, but that would only be useful on a road that is straight as an arrow.
“Establishes the technological groundwork for taxing you per mile driven!”
Yep - but first the VAT.
This comes after...figure 10 cents per mile, increasing by 5 cents per year, until we achieve our required goal in reducing greenhouse gasses.
Change.
Dear James...
Never visit England.
=)
SkyNet???
You kid but we are going to see it go to more of a paybymile system. As people move to electric cars (not just hybrids) we are faced with either raising licensing fees into thousands for a car, taxing electric bills for roads, or paying tolls.
Politicians like toll roads, they are now working to sell them to private firms (sometimes outside America even) for short term funds to balance budgets.
They are also trying to turn existing freeways into tollroads.
Don’t expect to see much new development for high occupancy traffic with no tolls to be paid.
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