Victoria Police is boosting technology to scan numberplates for cars and drivers that should not be on the road.
Automatic number plate recognition has recently been fitted to another 200 police highway patrol vehicles.
As riders know all too well, an inordinate number of drivers involved in serious and deadly crashes with bike riders are on the road illegally.
The new technology allows police to detect drivers who are suspended, disqualified or unlicensed as well as unregistered and stolen vehicles and fraudulent number plates.
Registration information can also be matched against a database of vehicles of interest so they can be identified and removed from the road.
Around 45 million scans a year can now be read, and will surely identify and remove many drivers that are a risk to riders.
Unauthorised driving was a factor in around 10 per cent of fatal collisions last year, with police more determined than ever to stop the senseless loss of life.
More than 1700 motorists who were disqualified, suspended, unlicensed or driving unregistered vehicles were detected during Victoria Police’s recent Christmas operation in just 10 days.
As well as increasing police’s ability to identify and remove dangerous drivers from the road, the ANPR system includes in-car video (ICV) - a valuable tool to record audio and visual evidence during roadside intercepts that can be used in court.
Assistant Commissioner Road Policing, Glenn Weir said: “These drivers have no right to be on our roads.
“They pose a significant risk not only to themselves but to all road users.
“Automatic number plate recognition technology gives us another set of eyes on the roads to stop these drivers in their tracks.
“We will use the more than 200 highway patrol vehicles fitted with this technology at every opportunity – especially high-risk holiday periods."
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