Busted for speeding? Maine State Police have an app for that.

Maine troopers are preparing to issue traffic citations via computers in their cruisers. The motorist gets a printout of the citation, which is electronically sent to court.

Trooper Anthony Keim, the first to test the “e-citation program,” told WGME-TV that it’s easier to type out the ticket than to write it out by hand.

“When they first came out with the program, I was sort of a little skeptical that it was going to slow my process down on how I do things out here. But it really hasn’t,” Keim said.

It will be rolled out to all state police cruisers in December.

It comes with a cost of about $1,000 per cruiser, which is a problem for smaller departments. But some of them are hoping grants may eventually cover those costs.

Supporters say the system makes officers more efficient and keeps them safer by reducing the amount of time on roadsides during traffic stops. One of the makers of such systems said they reduce the amount of time for a traffic stop by half.

Buxton Police Chief Troy Cline said the system makes officers more efficient and allows them to be more cognizant of their surroundings.

“It would help the officers become more efficient and effective; it’s just a matter of getting the funds to do that,” he said.

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