The Ontario Provincial Police will begin using an aircraft to track aggressive highway drivers within the next two weeks, CTV News has learned.
The Cessna single-engine plane will be officially launched in early May, well before the Victoria Day long weekend, CTV's Paul Bliss reported. The force had originally tried to begin the operation in mid-March.
The aerial enforcement will begin by targeting the busy stretch of Highway 400 between Toronto and Barrie.
A spotter and a pilot will be aboard the aircraft, which will allow police to relay information to interceptor cruisers on the ground.
White marker points have been painted every 500 metres along selected stretches of Highway 400, which will allow police to measure the speeds of moving vehicles.
The aircraft will be equipped with infrared technology and a high-tech video camera to allow police to operate the plane day and night.
The OPP has been flying the plane over the highway recently, conducting trials and tracking speeders below. Officer training for the eyes-in-the-sky initiative is almost complete.
After the first phase of the project, the aircraft will patrol the most dangerous stretches of southern Ontario highways, as identified by police.
It has been 27 years since the OPP has had a plane in the sky full-time. It is the latest move to curb aggressive driving in the province.
Police forces throughout Ontario have been cracking down on street racers and highway speeders since stringent legislation came into effect last fall.
With a report from CTV Toronto's Paul Bliss
