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New Routers on Colorado Springs Police Cars Will Allow Direct Upload of Body Cam Footage

The police department plans to outfit a total of 250 patrol cars with the routers, which will allow officers to upload data from their cameras to a storage cloud at a very high rate.

(TNS) -- Colorado Springs, Colo., police have installed routers on the back of 88 patrol cars to help run the department's upcoming body-worn cameras program, Cmdr. Pat Rigdon said Wednesday.

An initial rollout of 65 cameras in the police's Gold Hill Division is scheduled for the week of Sept. 19.

Rigdon, who supervises the program, says the department plans to outfit a total of 250 patrol cars with the routers, which will allow officers to upload data from their cameras to a storage cloud "at a very high rate."

The black, cone-shaped routers can be seen on numerous cars around the city.

"The cameras will function without the router, but it does enhance the capabilities of the cameras," Rigdon said.

Initially set to be released in July, the program was delayed to allow more time for the camera vendor, Utility Associates, Inc., and service provider Verizon Wireless, to smooth out a certification issue related to uploading video footage.

In early August, police spokesman Lt. Howard Black said the certification would take about 30 days to complete.

Rigdon expects 475 officers to be wearing the cameras by October.

Last fall, Colorado Springs police received a $600,000 grant from the Department of Justice to assist in purchasing 500 cameras, which the law enforcement agency had to match to cover the cost of the program for the first two years.

©2016 The Gazette (Colorado Springs, Colo.) Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.