Danville: Police to talk cost-cutting plan for license plate reader program

The Danville Town Council is set for a special meeting Tuesday during which Police Chief Allan Shields will be on hand to give a report on the town’s automated license plate reader (ALPR) program.

At the online-only meeting, Shields will specifically discuss his department’s desire to change its ALPR vendor in an effort to reduce the overall cost while increasing the technical performance of the program, while also increasing the total number of locations covered by the program.

“Effective use of technology has become a critical component in crime prevention and law enforcement … The current system, which uses technology from Vigilant Solutions and Hitachi Vintara, has proven very effective at deterring crime and solving crimes that have been committed in Town,” DPD Lt. Jason Ingrassia wrote in a staff report. “During the intervening years, ALPR technology has evolved, and Flock Safety Systems — the proposed new vendor — now offers an improved system that can be operated more cost effectively.”

According to Ingrassia, the current operating cost of the ALPR program is $100,000 annually, which includes $67,000 in operating costs and $33,000 budgeted from the town to replace system components.

The total annual cost of the proposed new vendor would cost $70,000, costing approximately $2,000 per camera for 35 cameras at 23 locations — under the current program the town currently has cameras at 13 locations.

“The additional cameras would allow coverage for egress routes, uncovered areas where crime has occurred (such as Park n’ Ride) and coverage at central locations that will assist in ‘Shrinking the Town,'” Ingrassia added.

A term used to describe placing cameras at central hub locations, Shrinking the Town will allow officers to have a wider view of the community, increasing the opportunities to identify license plates that belong to stolen or wanted vehicles.

Officers would also be able to decrease the pool of potential suspect vehicles by reducing their search area to a smaller section of town, ideally a more effective strategy than having to search all vehicles that enter the town.

Both the Livermore and San Ramon police departments also use Flock Safety Systems, and according to Ingrassia have shared “great success.”

During Tuesday’s meeting, town officials are also set to receive an update on the status of the Town Offices relocation project as well as preparations that are being made for future public meetings.

The Danville Town Council is set to gather for its special meeting at 8:30 a.m. on Tuesday. Interested residents can view the meeting live or via recording on the town’s website or live on teleconferencing website Zoom using the Webinar ID: 827 5317 9688.