The Indiana Department of Transportation will test license plate-tracking technology next year to monitor "unpermitted overweight vehicles," the agency said Tuesday.
Officials said INDOT will pilot the technology after an overweight semi passed over Interstate 65's southbound Wildcat Creek bridge in Tippecanoe County. Crews spent three days repairing damage to the structure, finishing on July 1 — about a month before construction on the northbound bridge caused a monthlong detour from Lebanon to Lafayette.
To monitor violators, a camera system will work in tandem with one of about a dozen "weight-in-motion" sensors embedded in the asphalt. The sensors weigh vehicles as they travel across Indiana's interstate system, said Scott Manning, strategic communications director for INDOT.
When the sensor records an overweight load, the nearby camera — which will be installed on I-94 in LaPorte County — will snap a photo of the violator's license plate, Manning said. Since INDOT is not charged with enforcing laws and the program is only a pilot, Manning said the agency would send an "awareness letter" to rule-breakers.
"The intent would be to use what we've learned from the pilot to ultimately get to a state statute standpoint, where we would be able to ... actually send a letter with an accompanying fine," Manning said.
If the pilot in LaPorte County is successful, more cameras could be rolled out as INDOT may "recommend legislative changes" to state lawmakers, according to a press release. Kapsch, a company specializing in transportation technology, agreed to provide pilot equipment — which could be installed by spring 2016 — at no cost, Manning said.