On Tuesday, June 15, City Council voted 8-0 (one absence) to agree to a memorandum of understanding with the Colorado State Patrol regarding automated license plate readers (ALPRs) to help with locating stolen vehicles within city limits. The $66,240 project will be fully funded by a grant from the Colorado Metro Auto Theft Task (CMATT) Force.

Over the last two years, the City of Brighton has experienced a large increase in motor vehicle thefts. During that time period, the Brighton Police Department has investigated 476 hit and run crashes, with 89 so far in 2021. 

Automated license plate readers are high-speed, computer-controlled camera systems that capture all license plate numbers that come into view, along with the location, date and time. The data is then uploaded to a central server. The ALPR cameras will be installed on the traffic light located at 11th Avenue and Bridge Street (eastbound and westbound lanes would be monitored). The memorandum of understanding with the Colorado State Patrol will allow Brighton Police to use the State Patrol's server to download all data obtained. This will save the city the cost of a server to house the data.

Brighton Police will use the data obtained from ALPR to track stolen vehicle information. This will help to determine the amount of stolen vehicles driving in Brighton. The ALPR can also be used to find a vehicle, which will also assist officers in locating individuals during an alert (i.e. Amber Alert, Silver Alert, etc.).

The city will be responsible for the minor costs of installing the camera.

If you have questions, please contact Investigations Commander Frank Acosta at facosta@brightonco.gov.