Bermuda Will Launch a Massive RFID Tag System on Driving Population

Yes, but would it play in Peoria?

Bermuda is about to launch a massive RFID tag system on its driving population, giving the government the ability to track every vehicle at every location at all times of the day. For starters, each vehicle will have to have its own unique RFID number, which is stored in a central government database. Then, a huge number of stationary and mobile tag readers will have to be installed at key locations all around the island.

That's all well and good, since it's already under way. This is going to happen. So if you live in Bermuda or you're just visiting, be warned. The natural extension of this, of course, is that the government can track vehicles that break driving laws and automatically issue tickets by mail. (Remember, tourists, that Bermuda might have different traffic laws than your home country does.)


This is not an insurmountable project, really. The entire island is just 21 square miles. It has 63,000 people and 47,000 vehicles but not a whole lot of territory for tag-reading devices to cover. Still, the government anticipates earning $11 million in the next five years alone in fines that would ordinarily have been missed.

So back to Peoria. Well, that's a bigger problem, since the Illinois town has twice the population and doesn't benefit from things like a natural water border. But you never know.




Written by Tom Charity
Published in Automobiles