Speeding Tickets from Space

This is just seriously creepy and screwed up. And I have no idea how this can be cost effective. No to mention, and this is a massive pet peeve of mine, the fact that these tickets basically have to be issued just for speeding, while speeding DOES NOT EQUAL driving unsafely. I had a 75yr old woman driving in front of me today, wobbling over two lanes and then randomly slowing down and speeding up until putting her right blinker on and turning right four roads later. This is unsafe driving (people over the age of 70 are 4 times more likely to be at fault in accidents which lead to death), but no cop will ever, ever, pull her over. But if I was doing 78 in a 65 on a clear day on an empty road in a good car with good brakes and good tires, I could get a ticket, and have gotten tickets. WTF.

Anyway, here is the article.

http://scitech.blogs.cnn.com/2010/04/22/satellites-to-issue-speeding-tickets-from-space/?hpt=T2

April 22, 2010

Satellites to issue speeding tickets from space

Posted: 03:14 PM ET

From our content partner Mashable:

UK drivers had better stay under that speed limit, because the traffic authorities are watching… from outer space. According to The Telegraph, an American company called PIPS Technology has developed a system that uses two cameras on the ground and one mounted on a satellite in orbit to catch speeders.

The system - called “SpeedSpike” - figures your average speed between two points, captures an image of your license plate and reports you if you’re going faster than the law allows. Oh, and if you’re hoping Great Britain’s notoriously gray weather will save you, you’re out of luck; the system works even when it’s cloudy or dark.

SpeedSpike will be tested in two places: the London borough of Southwark, and along the A374 between Torpoint and Anthony in Cornwall. If the trial is successful, the tech may be used to enforce speed limits near schools, to reduce the need for speed bumps, and for “main road enforcement for traffic reduction.”