Interesting take on beating congestion charges
22 January 2003, 02:45 PM
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Copied from another BBS:
Cut to the chase - How to legally beat the congestion charging system.
Essentially all that is required to fool the cameras is that they read the wrong numberplate on your car OR read the right numberplate wrongly. The camera is essentially scanning the front of your car and looking for a rectangular shape that it ''thinks'' is a number plate. Now clearly most number-plates are at the front and in the middle of the bumper, so that is where the software is going to focus first. It locates the rectangular plate shape first and then makes an attempt to read the characters on it. Provided there is only one thing that looks like a plate, the plate is cleanish, reasonably straight and the characters are the usual font (See below) it will be successful 90-98% of the time.
This is the British law about number plates and is worth reading.
http://www.hmso.gov.uk/si/si2001/20010561.htm#6
From the above link it is clearly illegal to deliberately obscure your number plate, or have it very dirty, or remove it, mess around with the fonts, or drive with some of it broken off or hanging off. BUT it is not illegal to move your number plate to the extreme right (or left) of your front or rear bumper (picture a new Alfa Romeo Spider which has its plate to the side) AND it is not illegal to put a six or seven letter phrase where the number plate used to be before you moved it. You must of course display you unadulterated numberplate at the extreme right (or left) of your bumper.
The phrase for your personalised sign could be JUDIE or FUKUKEN or BECKHAM or whatever you like. Ideally you want to use letters that look like numbers O and I, but you don''t need to use numbers, letters by themselves will confuse the system and if you stick to letters of the alphabet (A-Z) then there is no way the police can claim you are obscuring your numberplate or appear to have two numberplates. You are merely DECORATING your car with a sign and nobody in their right mind would think that a sign that said NOFIVER or BECKHAM was a number plate; although they might be able to legally argue that N0F1VER appeared to be. So stick to letters.
I have discovered that you can even just have a pattern that looks like letters to a computer but to the human eye is not even readable. It is almost as effective.
The font used to print all modern number plates in the UK is called the Charles Wright font.
http://www.charles-wright.com/homeset.html
You can download it from the above site for 39 quid and I am sure the web-site will be very happy if 100,000 of you do. On the other hand you could ''phone a friend'' (or eight) and split the cost with them or try and find a pirate copy of it using Kazaa if you are a real tight wad like me..
Once you have the font it is merely a question of making up your ''sign'' or signs using a word processor. Make sure your sign has the same physical dimensions as a number plate, same background area and colour, same font size and same letter spacing. Remember you are trying to make your sign LOOK like a number plate to a non-human computer but also make sure that not even the stupidest policemen would be able to claim in court that it was mistakable for a number plate to any human. AND you are also displaying your genuine number plate on the car anyway just shifted to the extreme right (or left) of your bumper but kept facing forward, visible, clean and at the right height (same height from the road as it was before you moved it). According to the above web-site, which quotes the law, you have obeyed the law. If the cameras cannot read it, then Ken had better get some new cameras and software or just scrap the whole scheme and go find another job.
A less creative (but just as practical) alternative is to go to a car accessory shop and have them make you up a 'sign' using a number plate stencil. Tell them that you want it for your bedroom door. They will charge you about 10 quid. Stick it on your car (ideally with bolts but glue will do it) well or some little [censored] will nick it off your car and use it on his. If the car accessory shop refuse to make you up a sign, go to another shop because you''ll soon find a shop that wants your money or better still let your fingers do the walking and call around first.
Now logically if it is not illegal to have one girlfriend''s name or favourite soccer star on your bumper, then it is not illegal to have two or more. Clearly the more signs you have, the more difficult it is for the software behind the camera to pick the genuine numberplate from the signs. With two or more signs you are going to confuse the hell out of the program. Error....cannot compute !!! The front of your car is going to look like Piccadilly Circus, but only for a while.
In theory the government could legally ban all letters and number from the front or rear of cars, but I don''t think they would do that. For one thing it would be violating some basic freedoms and for another the people who make bumper stickers would complain very loudly. Moreover, it takes time to change laws and if the TFL system is not working in the first two months, it is a dead duck and just like the poll tax no politician is going to be stupid enough to re-introduce it.
Here are some ideas for double signs. I am sure the more creative of you can think of even better ones and I am waiting with baited-breath to see what you come up with. Perhaps a tabloid newspaper will give a holiday for two for the most creative phrases.
KENLIVIN STONED
FIVER RICHER
CHARGE THIS V
FRY-ME? ****U
So there it is - My secret is out. Help yourself by sharing it with many other London car drivers. I will now be working hard at my everyday business for the next five years rather than drinking Pina Coladas on some Mexican beach surrounded by a bevy of dusky beauties. But as John Lennon said, the best things in life are free. If we all acheived our dreams we would have nothing more to dream about.
Hopefully you'll follow the simple instructions or find a friend who can and save you a few hundred quid. I have no intention of seeking fortune, infamy or the "wrath of Ken", writing a book about this subject. The pleasure of seeing Red Ken''s ugly face with egg dribbling from his chin or hearing his awful squeaky little voice complaining about it will be enough fun for me.
Good luck Londoners and don't let the buggers get you down.
DocSpock.
Copyright Notice. You the reader are welcome to send this to whoever you want or put it up on a website or publish it in a newspaper etc., as long as you give credit to the author DocSpock and don''t try and pass it off intellectually as your own idea.
Usual Legal Disclaimer. While I hope and believe that the materials above will be helpful, I do not warrant their accuracy or completeness. These ideas are general in nature and may not apply to particular circumstances. The information is not offered as legal or any other advice on any particular matter and should not be relied on as such. Moreover, you have to find me before you can prosecute or expose me.
Cut to the chase - How to legally beat the congestion charging system.
Essentially all that is required to fool the cameras is that they read the wrong numberplate on your car OR read the right numberplate wrongly. The camera is essentially scanning the front of your car and looking for a rectangular shape that it ''thinks'' is a number plate. Now clearly most number-plates are at the front and in the middle of the bumper, so that is where the software is going to focus first. It locates the rectangular plate shape first and then makes an attempt to read the characters on it. Provided there is only one thing that looks like a plate, the plate is cleanish, reasonably straight and the characters are the usual font (See below) it will be successful 90-98% of the time.
This is the British law about number plates and is worth reading.
http://www.hmso.gov.uk/si/si2001/20010561.htm#6
From the above link it is clearly illegal to deliberately obscure your number plate, or have it very dirty, or remove it, mess around with the fonts, or drive with some of it broken off or hanging off. BUT it is not illegal to move your number plate to the extreme right (or left) of your front or rear bumper (picture a new Alfa Romeo Spider which has its plate to the side) AND it is not illegal to put a six or seven letter phrase where the number plate used to be before you moved it. You must of course display you unadulterated numberplate at the extreme right (or left) of your bumper.
The phrase for your personalised sign could be JUDIE or FUKUKEN or BECKHAM or whatever you like. Ideally you want to use letters that look like numbers O and I, but you don''t need to use numbers, letters by themselves will confuse the system and if you stick to letters of the alphabet (A-Z) then there is no way the police can claim you are obscuring your numberplate or appear to have two numberplates. You are merely DECORATING your car with a sign and nobody in their right mind would think that a sign that said NOFIVER or BECKHAM was a number plate; although they might be able to legally argue that N0F1VER appeared to be. So stick to letters.
I have discovered that you can even just have a pattern that looks like letters to a computer but to the human eye is not even readable. It is almost as effective.
The font used to print all modern number plates in the UK is called the Charles Wright font.
http://www.charles-wright.com/homeset.html
You can download it from the above site for 39 quid and I am sure the web-site will be very happy if 100,000 of you do. On the other hand you could ''phone a friend'' (or eight) and split the cost with them or try and find a pirate copy of it using Kazaa if you are a real tight wad like me..
Once you have the font it is merely a question of making up your ''sign'' or signs using a word processor. Make sure your sign has the same physical dimensions as a number plate, same background area and colour, same font size and same letter spacing. Remember you are trying to make your sign LOOK like a number plate to a non-human computer but also make sure that not even the stupidest policemen would be able to claim in court that it was mistakable for a number plate to any human. AND you are also displaying your genuine number plate on the car anyway just shifted to the extreme right (or left) of your bumper but kept facing forward, visible, clean and at the right height (same height from the road as it was before you moved it). According to the above web-site, which quotes the law, you have obeyed the law. If the cameras cannot read it, then Ken had better get some new cameras and software or just scrap the whole scheme and go find another job.
A less creative (but just as practical) alternative is to go to a car accessory shop and have them make you up a 'sign' using a number plate stencil. Tell them that you want it for your bedroom door. They will charge you about 10 quid. Stick it on your car (ideally with bolts but glue will do it) well or some little [censored] will nick it off your car and use it on his. If the car accessory shop refuse to make you up a sign, go to another shop because you''ll soon find a shop that wants your money or better still let your fingers do the walking and call around first.
Now logically if it is not illegal to have one girlfriend''s name or favourite soccer star on your bumper, then it is not illegal to have two or more. Clearly the more signs you have, the more difficult it is for the software behind the camera to pick the genuine numberplate from the signs. With two or more signs you are going to confuse the hell out of the program. Error....cannot compute !!! The front of your car is going to look like Piccadilly Circus, but only for a while.
In theory the government could legally ban all letters and number from the front or rear of cars, but I don''t think they would do that. For one thing it would be violating some basic freedoms and for another the people who make bumper stickers would complain very loudly. Moreover, it takes time to change laws and if the TFL system is not working in the first two months, it is a dead duck and just like the poll tax no politician is going to be stupid enough to re-introduce it.
Here are some ideas for double signs. I am sure the more creative of you can think of even better ones and I am waiting with baited-breath to see what you come up with. Perhaps a tabloid newspaper will give a holiday for two for the most creative phrases.
KENLIVIN STONED
FIVER RICHER
CHARGE THIS V
FRY-ME? ****U
So there it is - My secret is out. Help yourself by sharing it with many other London car drivers. I will now be working hard at my everyday business for the next five years rather than drinking Pina Coladas on some Mexican beach surrounded by a bevy of dusky beauties. But as John Lennon said, the best things in life are free. If we all acheived our dreams we would have nothing more to dream about.
Hopefully you'll follow the simple instructions or find a friend who can and save you a few hundred quid. I have no intention of seeking fortune, infamy or the "wrath of Ken", writing a book about this subject. The pleasure of seeing Red Ken''s ugly face with egg dribbling from his chin or hearing his awful squeaky little voice complaining about it will be enough fun for me.
Good luck Londoners and don't let the buggers get you down.
DocSpock.
Copyright Notice. You the reader are welcome to send this to whoever you want or put it up on a website or publish it in a newspaper etc., as long as you give credit to the author DocSpock and don''t try and pass it off intellectually as your own idea.
Usual Legal Disclaimer. While I hope and believe that the materials above will be helpful, I do not warrant their accuracy or completeness. These ideas are general in nature and may not apply to particular circumstances. The information is not offered as legal or any other advice on any particular matter and should not be relied on as such. Moreover, you have to find me before you can prosecute or expose me.
22 January 2003, 03:09 PM
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You could say all the same for TRUVO (sp?) speed cameras etc. But as the systems all take photos that are stored and then can be read later by a human you are unlikely to get off with it.
Cheers
Ian
Cheers
Ian
22 January 2003, 03:20 PM
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Said it before, and will say it again...
Remember London's ring of steel works on the same principle and is designed to give a response in seconds as to whether a car is associated with a terrorist suspect.
Wouldn't like to say what would happen, but I would imagine the system would start flagging more and more, resulting in more stops, resulting in more conjestion, resulting in calls for more conjestion charging.
I don't think you'll beat the system...
Remember London's ring of steel works on the same principle and is designed to give a response in seconds as to whether a car is associated with a terrorist suspect.
Wouldn't like to say what would happen, but I would imagine the system would start flagging more and more, resulting in more stops, resulting in more conjestion, resulting in calls for more conjestion charging.
I don't think you'll beat the system...
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22 January 2003, 04:49 PM
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The company I work for did a sizeable amount of the work for it, and they tell me it does. I'd say you could very well be right tho, as it's a pig to make it work 100% of the time...
22 January 2003, 07:14 PM
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So you follow the advice and drive into Central London with "KENLIVIN STONED" on your car.
The camera picks up the plate of "KENLIVIN STONED" and the computer says "aha, this plate hasn't paid tha charge, so i'll check the registration details against the DVLA". "Oh dear, i can't get a match - better print out a high resolution copy of the picture for one of my human friends to look at".
Human says, "gosh, a Ford Focus with a real number plate on the far left". "Let me check is this plate matches a charge-payer" - nope it doesn't. "I had better check with the DVLA to see where the registered keeper lives so that i can send out a nice big fine for not paying"!!!!
mb
The camera picks up the plate of "KENLIVIN STONED" and the computer says "aha, this plate hasn't paid tha charge, so i'll check the registration details against the DVLA". "Oh dear, i can't get a match - better print out a high resolution copy of the picture for one of my human friends to look at".
Human says, "gosh, a Ford Focus with a real number plate on the far left". "Let me check is this plate matches a charge-payer" - nope it doesn't. "I had better check with the DVLA to see where the registered keeper lives so that i can send out a nice big fine for not paying"!!!!
mb
22 January 2003, 07:42 PM
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They might for a bit.... But once the £££ come in they will not bother
Anyway it wont be theirs for long. Police will take over for other reasons............
Anyway it wont be theirs for long. Police will take over for other reasons............
22 January 2003, 11:43 PM
#11
Just a thought, whenever I'm over in the UK in a Dutch registered car (scoob of course), I don't have to pay the 'London road tax' do I?
The DVLC cannot help them if they want to check my plate!
The DVLC cannot help them if they want to check my plate!
22 January 2003, 11:54 PM
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Remember the snow? I remember seeing nuff plates totally obsucred by the snow whilst just driving along. I'd like to see how the system would cope if that happened again...
astraboy.
astraboy.
23 January 2003, 12:41 AM
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What happens if a foreign car has the same plate id as a uk one? (or looks the same as) or is there agreement between countries to have different numbers/formats to prevent this?
07 February 2003, 07:07 PM
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Its just been on the news tonight that the system cannot cope with foreign plates BUT if the same plate is a persistent offender then they will track its progress through the city and stop it (yeah right).
ANYWAY seriously, to **** up the system THIS will work, be a cyclist with an easily readable numberplate attached to your bike (or jacket) at the front, its not illegal, and if it just happens to be the same as John Prescotts jag registration, or maybe Livingstones wifes car, they will get a bill for non payment
Congestion rip off
ANYWAY seriously, to **** up the system THIS will work, be a cyclist with an easily readable numberplate attached to your bike (or jacket) at the front, its not illegal, and if it just happens to be the same as John Prescotts jag registration, or maybe Livingstones wifes car, they will get a bill for non payment
Congestion rip off
07 February 2003, 07:55 PM
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I could just imagine announcements on Capital FM in the mornings...
"Todays number plate is T123 WRX. This can be downloaded and printed on our website..." I'm sure you can work the rest out for yourselves...
"Todays number plate is T123 WRX. This can be downloaded and printed on our website..." I'm sure you can work the rest out for yourselves...
07 February 2003, 08:52 PM
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Having spent a fair amount of time working on image processing systems, I can validate what boomer says in his first post, but would point out the the camera doesn't actually focus anywhere. It takes an image which is then number crunched to find a possible rectangle. The rectangle will be crunched again to find a number. The entire image will be processed, so it won't matter which one is spotted first - it will more than likely find the correct number. If things don't look right it will pass it on to a nice human to have a quick glance and post you your fine.
Easiest way to beat congestion charges and traffic jams is to live in Belfast
Easiest way to beat congestion charges and traffic jams is to live in Belfast
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