Drivers are finding ways to make themselves invisible to speed and bus lane cameras but a counter crackdown has been launched.
Authorities are becoming increasingly concerned about the use of so-called ‘ghost plates’, otherwise known as 3D or 4D plates, which use infra-red reflective technology rendering traffic cameras unable to read them.
The result? Motorists carelessly going above the speed limit and swerving into bus lanes for a shortcut. Cloned plates have also been on the rise, reports Birmingham Live.
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Councils and police are now being equipped with special cameras to detect these bogus number plates in a bid to hit back against rogue drivers.
(Image: Getty Images)
Anyone who has these dodgy plates fitted can effectively do what they want on the roads without detection, including breaking speed limits and entering bus lanes and low emission zones without paying charges.
Council wardens in Wolverhampton are among those who have been handed the cameras as part of the crackdown. Anyone caught using the illegal plates has been warned they face a £100 fine.
Councillor Craig Collingswood, the environmental and climate change cabinet member at Wolverhampton City Council, boasted: “Wolverhampton is leading the way as the first council investing in this state-of-the-art technology to deter and detect offenders.”
(Image: Getty Images/iStockphoto)
“Bus lanes are essential for the public transport network to operate efficiently and speed cameras help to keep the public safe from speeding vehicles and reduce the likelihood of a crash.
“All motorists can expect to pay a fine if found to be using these illegal methods to avoid cameras and taxi drivers licensed by Wolverhampton may have their licence suspended or revoked.”
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