The company that operates the four speed enforcement vans on Oahu roadways had never used laser cameras before selecting them for the state Department of Transportation Photo Enforcement Program. Traffic photo enforcers cut
teeth on laser technology
in HonoluluState shrugs off ticket math
By Nelson Daranciang
ndaranciang@starbulletin.com"This is the first laser technology that the company has used," said Doug Carlson, spokesman for Affiliated Computer Systems. "But the technology is not new. It has been around and is proven."
ACS, formerly known as Lockheed Martin IMS, proposed using radar cameras in its first bid to the state.
The company uses radar cameras for speed and red-light enforcement in jurisdictions in Australia, Canada and the United States.
In its second bid proposal to the state, the company switched to laser cameras.
The company switched because it felt laser is better technology, Carlson said. ACS still uses radar in the other jurisdictions.
The laser cameras are made in Melbourne, Australia, and were supplied by Poltech International. In its bid proposal, ACS said Poltech "has over 150 of these devices in successful operation by police agencies around the world."
The company promised to maintain documentation of equipment certification in Hawaii to support any court challenges of the technology. Carlson said the documentation is company property and not available for examination.
On the first day Oahu drivers were subject to citation, only 158 of the 927 cars caught speeding by the cameras were issued citations.
The rest of the photos were rejected, DOT officials said, because of operator error. The entire license plate was not visible in some of the photographs. In others the cameras were not centered on the vehicle to insure a proper speed reading.
Other photographs had the wrong location printed on them.