York Regional Police (YRP) is expanding its Automated Licence Plate Recognition (ALPR) system to all of its 230 frontline vehicles, which will alert officers to infractions like driving while disqualified or while suspended.
“YRP continues to leverage innovative technology to find efficiencies in our service delivery,” Chief Jim MacSween says. “Expanding the ALPR system will improve the ability of our officers to identify drivers and vehicles operating in violation of the Highway Traffic Act, ultimately making our roads safer for all road users.”
The ALPR is integrated with an in-car camera system that’s in place in all YRP vehicles and automatically reads licence plates while the officer is on patrol. The system alerts the officer to infractions associated with a licence plate, as identified by the Ministry of Transportation.
Those infractions also include stolen licence plates, misuse of licence plates, persons wanted on warrants, Amber Alerts and other serious crimes. Upon receiving an alert, the officer must confirm the information with various police and ministry systems before stopping the vehicle or enforcing the violation.
YRP has been operating the ALPR program since 2019. Any personal information that’s collected is for the purposes of roadside-related law enforcement, in accordance with the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms and consistent with YRP’s obligations under the Municipal Freedom of Information and Protection and Privacy Act. Anyone with questions about the collection of information should contact the YRP Freedom of Information Unit at 1-866-876-5423, ext. 6740.
Police are also reminding vehicle owners to renew their licence plates at no cost through Service Ontario. Earlier this year, the provincial government eliminated renewal fees and the need to display a validation sticker on passenger vehicles, light-duty trucks, motorcycles and mopeds, but you must still renew your licence plate online every one to two years.
