Does Your Agency's Equipment Pass the Test? Traffic Law Enforcement Technologies

• NCJ Number: 206930
• Journal: Police Chief Volume: 71 Issue: 7 Dated: July 2004 Pages: 39-41
• Author(s): J. F. Bowman; David Fisher
• Date Published: July 2004
• Length: 3 pages
• Publication Format: Article
• Publication Type: Report (Technical)
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

This article reports on the testing of and future outlook for traffic law enforcement speed-measuring equipment.

Abstract

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has published standards for both police traffic radar and lidar (laser). Before these standards are accepted and published, the National Institute for Standards and Technology (NIST) and the International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP) technical consultants evaluate each of the technologies. Once the standards have been published, the IACP establishes independent testing laboratories to test and certify equipment to ensure that the equipment meets the published standards. The testing laboratories develop a Consumer Product List (CPL) that contains all the models that meet the standards. Once a model has been placed on the CPL, law enforcement agencies may elect to have newly purchased equipment tested and certified before placing it into service. After being used for a period of time, equipment should be retested and certified in order to ensure that it remains accurate in its readings. The IACP's Highway Safety Committee has a standing subcommittee known as the Enforcement Technologies Advisory Technical Subcommittee (ETATS). ETATS and its various working groups meet periodically to review the current status of the enforcement technologies programs and to plan future initiatives. ETATS is currently working on standards documents for across-the-road radar (photo radar), photo lidar, and photo red light cameras (intersection safety systems). Across-the-road radar is directed across the road at an angle to the flow of traffic. Target vehicles are only momentarily in the operational area of the beam, which simplifies tracking in areas of heavy traffic, and the infraction is captured on camera. Photo lidar combines the traditional lidar with a camera, and photo red light cameras monitor traffic flow at red-light intersections to detect red-light violations and speeding at intersections. Information on resources is provided.