By Gretchen Webster

WESTPORT — License plate readers, proven to be what police call “force multipliers” helping to track down criminals, will be installed on Sherwood Island Connector, police officials told the Board of Selectwomen on Wednesday.

The technology has been based at the Saugatuck Railroad Station’s Lot No.1 near Interstate 95’s Exit 17 for several years.

The devices are particularly important as the town grows faster than the size of its police force, Chief Foti Koskinas said. “When we see the growth of the town, with basically the same [number of] police personnel, we depend on technology to help,” he said. “The only way to keep up is with technology.”

A maintenance agreement between the town and the state Department of Transportation, approved by the selectwomen, gives the town permission to install, maintain and replace automated license plate readers on the connector, a state road.

“We’re seeing a lot of stolen cars coming off the highway,” said Deputy Chief Ryan Paulsson, who outlined the agreement to the selectwomen. 

Armed with license plate numbers, and sometimes even a photo of a stolen car leaving or entering Westport, police have a much better chance of catching perpetrators and recovering vehicles, often by sharing data with neighboring communities that also have license plate readers, he said. These include Fairfield, Darien, New Canaan and Bridgeport, which all use the technology.

“Our officers can take a proactive approach. We can do more if we have advanced information,” he said. 

License plate readers based at the Saugatuck Railroad Station parking lot for several years have boosted the town’s ability to solve stolen vehicle crimes and to make arrests, Paulsson said.

What happens to the data?

When the security of data collected by the license plate readers was questioned by Selectwoman Candace Savin, Paulsson and Koskinas assured the board that information collected by the technology will be used only for police work. 

“Only law enforcement has access to the information,” Paulsson said.

E-Z Pass electronic tolls, used on highways in other states, collect more information about passing vehicles than police license plate readers, according to Koskinas.

Selectwoman Andrea Moore asked if the readers also would be used to track cars coming off the Merritt Parkway. She said she would like to see the devices used in other priority areas. 

The police officials indicated the technology may also be installed at other points in town in the future.

The selectwomen voted unanimously to approve the agreement with the state allowing installation of license plate readers on the connector.

Freelance writer Gretchen Webster, a Fairfield County journalist for many years, was editor of the Fairfield Minuteman and has taught journalism at New York and Southern Connecticut State universities.