Tybee Island council rescinds decision to buy license plate scanners

I was highly critical of the recent decision by the city of Tybee Island to scan the license plates of every single car coming or going from the island.

Today, the Tybee Island city council voted unanimously to overturn that earlier vote.

From the Associated Press, Tybee Island scraps plan to track license plates:

Mayor Jason Buelterman (BELL-tuhr-man) said city officials had learned the machines wouldn’t automatically tally how many cars were visiting the island. He said the decision was also influenced by backlash from residents and visitors who felt the scanners would violate their privacy.

It was clear from earlier discussions that at least one council member wanted to advertise the presence of the scanners to discourage criminals from coming onto the island at all.

I’m glad to see that Tybee backed off on this plan.