The Western Cape’s Department of Transport and Public Works at the weekend touted as “a first of its kind in South Africa” its “deployment” of hand-held devices for traffic officers to “assist enforcement”. Spokesperson Siphesihle Dube said the devices “have been entirely developed and tested over the past two years” by the department and will be in operation across the province.“The devices allow traffic officers real-time access to the Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) camera system‚ which is linked to the eNaTIS database where all vehicle and driver information is stored‚” he said.How it works- The cameras read the number plate of a passing vehicle‚ immediately relaying details of that vehicle’s make‚ class‚ registration status (outstanding licence fees)‚ roadworthy status‚ offences‚ warrants‚ and ownership to a central back office;- This information can then be relayed back to traffic officers in the field‚ positioned close to the ANPR‚ allowing them to stop a vehicle that has been flagged by the device for having offences attached to it;- The device also allows traffic officers to scan and read vehicle licence discs and drivers licences to verify their authenticity‚ as well as to pull information relating to past offences and possible warrants of arrest;As well as relaying information for enforcement‚ “this system will also serve as an information gathering tool for our traffic management component‚ assisting us to plan resource deployment better in areas where it is needed most”‚ said Dube...