Scroll down for Jan 2022 update..
A new spy-in-the-sky camera which identified 15,000 cases of drivers using mobile phones could also catch motorists eating, drinking, or not wearing a seatbelt, its makers say.
Smart cameras linked to a new, automated system using artificial intelligence (AI) are being trialled on an undisclosed UK motorway – ahead of a blanket ban on holding a mobile device while driving which comes into force in early 2022.
The cameras instantly analyse high-definition photos taken through the windscreen of passing cars, and Jenoptik, the enforcement technology firm testing the cameras in the UK, believes they will be crucial in providing evidence to prosecute offenders.
The pilot scheme has been running since spring and it is hoped a wider rollout across the country will be possible next year.
But Acusensus, the Australian firm who designed the cameras, admits that they can be used to catch motorists doing anything from eating, drinking, smoking, adjusting the radio or using navigation devices in a holder.
The company says in a brochure that the system ‘addresses all forms of distraction, beyond the illegal use of mobile phones’.
The technology, which can also catch drivers not wearing a seatbelt, is already used in New South Wales (NSW), Australia, where it is estimated to have reduced road fatalities by a fifth since it was introduced two years ago.
Updated January 2022:
new motorway camera has caught thousands of distracted motorists using a mobile behind the wheel.
The cameras that instantly catch people using a phone are being trialled on motorways across the UK with the expectation they will be rolled out widely across the UK’s Motorway network in the future.
Shocking findings from the trial suggest one in 200 drivers use their phone while driving on the motorway.
During the course of the trial, a single camera caught 15,000 people with a phone in their hand in just six months.
But the true figure will be much higher as the cameras were not monitoring all lanes of traffic, and were not used continuously.
The cameras use artificial intelligence to instantly analyse high definition photos taken through the windscreen of every passing vehicle.
They can be fitted to overhead gantries or portable trailers, taking images in all weathers.
If the cameras are legally approved, drivers face being sent notices of intended prosecution similar to speeding penalties.
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