ANPR is a method and form of electronic traffic management that uses optical character recognition to analyse live video and data, to identify and read vehicle number plates at a phenomenal rate.

Mansfield police and Highway Patrol have booked the ANPR for the next three days and will have the specially marked vehicle and camera around the district.

Sergeant Marty McLaughlin of Mansfield Highway Patrol said the exercise will be targeting snow traffic with the camera and back-up police vehicles will be anywhere from Yarck on Thursday through to Mt Buller Road and along the Maroondah Highway on Friday and Saturday.

ANPR cameras capture images of number plates which are checked against vehicle database LEAP or VicRoads.

An alert sounds when offending vehicles are detected such as unregistered or stolen plates.

Sgt McLaughlin said police officers some distance ahead of the camera are then alerted to stop the vehicle for further checking.

The custom fitted vans in which the ANPR system operates, has the benefit that it can be easily set up in various locations and conditions.

The system can be packed up and moved to any location in the short time frame of five minutes.

ANPR greatly increases the ability of specialist road policing and general duties police resources to detect and prosecute a far larger number of unauthorised drivers, stolen vehicles, stolen plates and unregistered vehicles.