Tucson City Council members voted unanimously this week to employ technology to crack down on illegal street racing.
The technologies, which add up to nearly a million dollars, include a mobile speed enforcement van, automated license plate readers and gunshot detection systems.
Mayor Regina Romero questioned the use of speed enforcement cameras, noting Tucson residents voted in 2015 to ban cameras for traffic violations, but city attorney Mike Rankin clarified that the ban only prohibited cameras from being the sole observer of a traffic violation.
“The policies that we will build around the use of technology will still, of course, reflect and honor any of the prohibitions that the voters approved," said Rankin.
Tucson Police Chief Chad Kasmar told council members that his department will be judged on how it uses its technology.
