MuniWireless

Southlake, a suburb of Dallas, Texas, is also using Wi-Fi for video surveillance in its downtown area. They are using equipment from Bridgwave Communications; the systems integrator is Redmoon, a wireless ISP based in Plano, Texas. Wireless video surveillance is one of the most sought-after applications among cities. However, as many UK cities have discovered, it’s not enough to put up cameras. You need people to monitor the images and do something about them to make it effective in fighting…

Last week I interviewed Lt. Tony Crawford of the Dallas Police Department to get a better picture of how the they are using wireless cameras installed in various parts of the central business district (CBD) to tackle crime. I wanted to know more about this project after reading a newspaper article on how the cameras captured a robbery at a Dallas bus station and allowed the police to arrest the suspect within a short period of time.

Among the questions I…