A new license plate reader installed on the Staten Island side of the Goethals Bridge by the Port Authority captures images of traffic to New Jersey. Deployment of the new readers is created with a drop in car thefts in the borough.People who who commit crimes and think they can get away undetected using Port Authority bridges and tunnels better think again.
Deployment of the readers, in conjunction with other efforts, is credited with a 40% drop in reported car thefts on Staten Island since a spike in 2022, officials said. Readers at the Goethals Bridge, where the event was held, are already installed as they are at the Holland and Lincoln tunnels and the George Washington Bridge.
Staten Island officials worked with the NYPD, the New Jersey Division of Criminal Justice and the Port Authority, lobbying for the readers on the bi-state agency’s six river crossings between New York and New Jersey U.S. Rep. Nicole Malliotakis, R-11th Dist. also credits U.S. Customs and Border Patrol officials who alerted her to the issue of transnational organizations that steal vehicles and ship them to Africa, the Dominican Republic and other places to sell, she said.