The town of Irmo is defending its decision to expand its use of license plate-reading cameras to provide more comprehensive coverage of the town, even as some residents worry about the level of surveillance all those cameras might put them under.
Town officials are planning to triple the number of cameras from Flock Safety that monitor traffic around town, allowing law enforcement to locate specific vehicles traveling through the community. Such cameras have become a popular feature for police departments across the country to use to gather data that could aid them in future investigations.
But the prospect of 33 separate cameras monitoring key intersections in town, collecting vehicle information on anyone who passes by. This week, Irmo put out a news release touting the benefits of the system to town residents and their safety…