HLM – Chapter 979 Traffic Flow Counter

The young man who was caught driving someone else’s car didn’t need to be intimidated—he immediately confessed everything.

He was from Cromwell and had accidentally noticed that the police car in Sunset Town was actually a highway sports car. Fascinated, he decided to drive it to hit on girls at a bar.

Of course, this made him assume the role of a road police officer.

Road police in New Zealand are different from those in other countries. They only operate in big cities, drive the fastest cars, and are mainly responsible for catching speeders or handling highway chases.

The young man even made a fake police ID. With this ID and the GTR police car, he had been having a blast in Auckland over the past few days, picking up girls every night.

Realizing the seriousness of his actions, he dejectedly said, “I knew that sooner or later I’d get caught; I just didn’t expect it to happen so soon. Officer, considering I’ve been cheering for you guys, can you not send me to jail?”

This wasn’t a serious case, so Wang Bo handed it over to Atulu to handle.

In the end, Atulu decided to go easy on the young man. When Wang Bo asked why, Atulu chuckled, “He promised to take me to the bar for some fun in the future.”

Wang Bo said, “You’re being unfair to your wife.”

“I did it on purpose! I’m taking revenge! I want her to know that if she lays a hand on me again, she’ll lose a very popular man!” Atulu said triumphantly.

Passing by, Conley remarked, “I advise you not to do that. If your wife finds out what you’re up to, it won’t just be a simple rock-paper-scissors game.”

“I’ve made up my mind!”

As winter arrived, Sunset Town’s warm-water beaches became useful. Some tourists, learning that they could bathe in hot springs here, brought shovels and spades to dig their own pools.

This gave Wang Bo a headache. The lakeside was dug up and ruined, looking messy and ugly—like the face of a leper.

So he decided to invest in building a stylish, elegant hot spring area at the warm-water lakeside.

Porter was put in charge of this project. His villa construction team had just finished their current work, so they could switch focus.

The hot spring area Wang Bo planned was divided into two parts: an outdoor section and an indoor section.

The designers offered different themed pavilions, so each hot spring area could have its own theme. For example, indoors could have a “Lord of the Rings” theme, with Hobbit-hole-style hot springs.

The government also carried out some infrastructure projects in Sunset Town. In mid-March, they began installing traffic flow counters.

Anyone who has been to New Zealand knows that on major roads, there are usually two parallel black steel cables laid across the road. From a distance, they look a bit like speed bumps.

Of course, they aren’t speed bumps—they are traffic flow counters.

The device’s function is to accurately record the speed and number of vehicles over a period of time without human supervision. It’s not some high-tech gadget but is mainly used to collect data on traffic conditions, which can then be used for road design, planning, and maintenance schedules.

Installation is straightforward. The traffic flow counter consists of two cables, which are fixed to the road with steel nails and strong adhesive tape.

One end of the device is connected to a box containing a computer, which performs the data statistics and analysis.

To prevent malicious damage, each counter also requires a surveillance camera.

The government only pays for the installation of the counters; local towns are responsible for the cameras.

Wang Bo happened to be building a monitoring system in Sunset Town, which he named the “Sky Eye Project.”

The project had three phases. Phase one would install 500 cameras, covering the town’s core areas, costing tens of millions.

But the traffic flow counter only cost 200,000. Since it was essentially a government gift to Sunset Town, Wang Bo accepted it gladly.

The main unit of the counter is a computer, but it works via pressure sensors.

The two black parallel steel cables on the road are the pressure sensors. They are wrapped in high-strength composite materials. Each time a vehicle wheel passes over the sensors, the counter in the connected box increments automatically.

“I thought this box didn’t have any high-tech gadgets inside, just a battery pack and some simple electrical components,” Atulu said, squatting to examine the counter.

Wang Bo replied, “You always think too simply.”

“So what if it’s valuable?” Conley asked.

Atulu shook his two big chests of fat and made a fierce face. “Back when I ran with gangs, I definitely would have stolen this thing with my crew!”

“You’re really something,” Uncle Bing teased.

“Come on, installation is complete. Let’s test it,” one of the installers waved at them.

Conley connected the computer to the terminal at Sunset Town Police Station.

Atulu stepped on the accelerator. The GTR lived up to its reputation as a highway beast; in seconds, it sped over the two pressure sensors with a whoosh.

Because the sensors are spaced at a fixed distance, the time difference between the first and second sensors allows the system to calculate the vehicle’s speed.

As the GTR passed, data appeared on Conley’s iPad: Speed: 122 km/h, overspeed: 22%, vehicle count: 1, time…

“The data is collected and analyzed, showing you which time periods have the most speeding or slow vehicles. Enforcement can then be focused accordingly,” the staff explained.

“Technology changes life,” Wang Bo nodded.

“Technology changes work,” the staff added.

Two days after the traffic counters went live, Wang Bo noticed that between 5 and 6 p.m., during twilight, speeding vehicles peaked.

Compared to before, the number of speeders had dropped significantly. Clearly, the “Ghost Car” enforcement campaign had improved safety on Highway 8.

Still, in the evenings, Wang Bo and Atulu would patrol the roadside for speeders, conveniently issuing fines.

A few days later, a light winter snow hit the South Island. Sunset Town’s police used the opportunity to catch speeders for practice.

“Hey, buddy, step out, hand over your license, 10 points deducted, take this ticket to pay the fine.”

“Don’t look at me, man. Who told you to speed? Here’s your ticket, go pay.”

“Officer, I wasn’t speeding, right? Not even 100 km/h.”

“Yes, sir. But you had children in the car not in child seats. You still get a fine,” Wang Bo shrugged.