BOARDMAN TWP., Ohio - Police in Boardman have installed speed trailers throughout the township that display drivers' speeds and flash a message saying 'photo captured' when vehicles exceed the speed limit by a certain amount.

Sgt. Joe O'Grady said generic messages on the sign, such as 'slow down,' were ineffective in deterring people from speeding. After exploring the speed trailer's system controls, he discovered that he could change the message to something that would grab a driver's attention. 

"I figured if people knew that we were taking pictures, that it would be more of a deterrent to say, 'Hey, slow down,' " O'Grady told 21 News.

This alert, however, does not result in a ticket. Instead, the trailers gather data to help police identify locations where speeding is frequent.

The sergeant stated that he programmed the sign to flash the alert when someone is driving 10 miles per hour over the speed limit.

After tracking the data, if police find an area with a high volume of speeders, they will send an officer to monitor the location and write citations the old-fashioned way.

"The data tells us the date and time and a picture of the violator," O'Grady said. 

Currently, there are three speed trailers placed throughout the township--one on Southern Boulevard, one on Euclid Boulevard, and another on Runnemeade Drive.

O'Grady mentioned that he is in the process of purchasing additional smaller speed trailers.

In April of this year, Governor Mike DeWine prohibited townships from using speed cameras to send tickets by mail.