New Weapon in War on Speeding

It may seems slightly counterintuitive to write a story on the speed war in Germany; after all, the country is famed for a distinct lack of speed limits on its autobahns. But the country has just completed successful trials on what could become law enforcement’s newest and possibly most devious attempt to hit you with a speeding ticket.

Produced by a German company called Vitronic that specialises in automation, particularly when it comes to traffic technology, the Vitronic Enforcement Trailer  is seen as the next generation of traffic surveillance technology, as if there wasn’t enough already. The system is an unmanned trailer-mounted speed camera that is protected from vandalism by its bulletproof exterior, designed to be deployed temporarily where the use of a real policeman would be too hazardous or costly. Yeah, right. 

It is battery-powered and designed to be capable of operating for five days without human intervention. Photographs of offenders can be wirelessly transmitted to the local police station in an encrypted format to stop any chance of hacking. The technology gets even better, or was that worse? The high-performance batteries can also supply enough juice to allow for the monitoring of multiple lanes and the LIDAR speed measuring system can enforce varying speed limits during different times of day and for differing vehicle types - there really is no escape. It is starting to sound even more like George Orwell’s Big Brother from the novel 1984. 

With its sleek design, the trailer does resemble some sort of stealth caravan, but it is light enough to be towed by just about any vehicle with a tow hook. Once deployed, the unmanned vehicle is not defenceless: the wheels retract into the vehicle, thus stopping any disgruntled motorist from re-positioning the trailer into the bottom of some local lake. Any attempt to tamper with the trailer will also trigger an alarm that sounds in the local police station, so you can expect company from the boys in blue should you decide to take matters into your own hand.

The exterior is tough too and is designed to be impenetrable even from firearms, and thus it would seem that the only thing you can do once you have been snapped is to stop at the nearest lay-by and gently weep as you picture the loss of your license and the need to take public transport for the next six months.