Spring Township Police Department cruisers are now equipped with license plate reader technology that automatically scans vehicle tags and detects violations.
The equipment was purchased with a grant from the Pennsylvania Auto Theft Prevention Authority. Spring Township is the first municipal police department in Centre County to use automated license plate readers, according to a department Facebook post.
The readers have a camera that takes a picture of a license plate then runs it through various databases to determine if the plate is valid, suspended or associated with a stolen vehicle. The readers are programmed with the cruisers’ onboard computer systems to alert officers when a violation is found.
‘Having this advantage available is very helpful to keeping the vehicles on the street safe and legal,’ Spring Township police said in a Facebook post. ‘These plate readers are designed to target the vehicles that are suspended for no insurance and/or listed as a stolen vehicle driving through the area.’
Police said that in the first few days of using the license plate readers, officers have found multiple vehicles driving in the township with no insurance and suspended plates
