Mass. Equipping Highway Signs With Radar Technology
BOSTON (CBS) – Message boards along a stretch of I-495 will now be able to monitor the speed of vehicles. MassDOT announced Tuesday that eight boards with messages to obey the speed limit will be equipped with new radar technology.
State Police will use that information to decide where they should step-up patrols to catch speeders. They say the new signs will keep the roads safer.
Related: MassDOT Says 'Use Ya Blinkah'
"The boards will collect data on the average rate of speed so that we will be able to better pinpoint areas where vehicle speeds are frequently exceeding the posted limit," MassDOT's Acting Secretary and CEO Frank DePaola said.
The radar equipment does not have the capability to identify individual vehicles or drivers.
State Police Lt. Colonel Edward Amodeo says the system means they can, "effectively utilize personnel and funding resources in the most efficient and effective way with the goal of safer roads and fatality reduction."
The program posts public safety signs that read, "Highway Safety Corridor / Laws Strictly Enforced." The radar-equipped signs will be posted in Chelmsford, Westford, Littleton, Boxborough, Bolton, and Berlin.
New Jersey truck driver Kenny Cox is very familiar with the Route 495 stretch in Chelmsford. He told WBZ's Jim Smith speeders are a big problem saying, "It's a real safety issue because when they speed they'll cut you off and they'll come across the exit ramp and you never see them until it's too late."
MassDOT says this corridor was selected because of the "incidence of speeding and for driving-related crashes involving injuries and fatalities."
State Police will also add patrols to enforce speed limits, reduce aggressive driving and prevent distracted driving.
WBZ-TV's Jim Smith contributed to this report.
MORE LOCAL NEWS FROM CBS BOSTON
