Police Download ReportPolice using lasers to catch tailgaters in Arizona
The Arizona Department of Public Safety has bought some laser devices manufactured by Laser Technology Inc. that have a feature allowing law enforcement to determine the distance between two moving vehicles remotely. This is allowing some officers there to issue tickets for tailgating with laser-sharp accuracy. Nine units have been purchased at a cost of almost $4,000 each and are in use in the Phoenix area. They have plans to use an $80,000 grant to purchase 19 additional units. Police are issuing $115 citations for following too closely, so it sounds like they have plans to be issuing a LOT of citations to tailgaters.
From The Arizona Republic:
Beaudoin, who is assigned to the East Valley, said the laser is most effective just before rush hour, when traffic is beginning to get heavy but is still moving fast. Typically, Beaudoin sets up on Loop 101.The laser is similar to a radar speed gun except it also can measure distance between vehicles.
Beaudoin said he sets the gun to measure the distance from his position to the center of a traffic lane. When two cars pass that location, he uses the gun to track the speed of both vehicles and calculate the distance between them.
The laser device, called a Lidar, is manufactured by Laser Technology Inc. of Colorado, which invented the radar speed gun. The Lidar is being used extensively in Australia, Canada and Hong Kong. The device also has proved popular among several police departments in Oregon.
Unlike radar units for tracking speeders, the Lidar laser is much more accurate. For instance, a radar typically shoots a beam that is 12 feet wide at 100 feet. By comparison, the laser beam is only 3 feet wide at 1,000 feet.
In addition to detecting tailgating, the Lidar device also can be used for speed detection and accident reconstruction.
