State-of-the-art cameras which can automatically detect drivers using mobile phones behind the wheel or not wearing a seat belt are being trialled in Greater Manchester.
The new ‘Heads Up’ technology from Acusensus captures footage of passing vehicles before the images are processed using artificial intelligence (AI) to detect potential offending drivers.
Footage deemed to contain evidence of an offence are sent for a secondary human check to confirm that an offence has occurred. If an image shows that no offence has been committed, it is deleted immediately by the software and no further action will be taken.
This trial will be used by Safer Roads Greater Manchester as a traffic survey so we can understand how many drivers still choose to break the law. This will be used to refine future road safety campaigns aiming to improve compliance of mobile phone and seat belt use by drivers.
Research shows that you are four times more likely to be in a crash if you use your phone while driving and twice as likely to die in a crash if you don’t wear a seat belt.
Peter Boulton, TfGM’s Network Director for Highways, said: “In Greater Manchester we know that distractions and not wearing seat belts are key factors in a number of road traffic collisions on our roads which have resulted in people being killed or seriously injured.
“By utilising this state-of-the-art technology provided by Acusensus, we hope to gain a better understanding of how many drivers break the law in this way, whilst also helping to reduce these dangerous driving practices and make our roads safer for everyone.”
Heads Up, which can be mounted to a vehicle or a trailer, will be deployed at several locations across Greater Manchester from Tuesday 3rd September on a trial basis.
