FHWA PILOT TESTS PC SYSTEMS FOR POLICE CRUISERS: DASH-MOUNTED TOUCH SCREEN SIMPLIFIES POLICE CAR COCKPIT, PUTS COPS ON THE CUTTING EDGE OF TECHNOLOGY

The Federal Highway Adminstration (FHWA) worked with the Texas Transportation Institute to come up with the Advanced Law Enforcement Response Technology (ALERT) system, a "clean cockpit" system for police cruisers, which is currently being pilot tested. The goal is an integrated PC application that will help police officers streamline their cruiser systems, do away with paperwork and improve communications. The project targets communications among police officers and also with other emergency and law enforcement units. ALERT would outfit police cars with a touch screen mounted on the dashboard and a removable pen computer run by a trunk-mounted PC.