Photo: Mike Skoropad (Flickr)
UK police trialling AI that detects drivers using phones
09 August 2022
by Christopher Carey
A ‘sensor test vehicle’ that can detect people using a mobile phone or not wearing a seatbelt while driving is being rolled out by UK police.
Developed by infrastructure supplier AECOM, the vehicle records footage of passing motorists and uses artificial intelligence (AI) to determine if people are committing an offence.
The system is currently being trialled by Warwickshire Police in conjunction with the UK’s highway agency, National Highways, and can be extended to detect tailgating vehicles in the future.
“Safety remains our top priority and we want everyone to get to their destination safely,” said Jeremy Phillips, Head of Road Safety at National Highways.
“Sadly, there are still drivers who do not feel the need to wear a seatbelt, become distracted by their phones or travel too close to the vehicle in front.
“We want to see if we can change driver behaviour and therefore improve road safety for everyone.”
According to UK government figures, there were 420 collisions on British roads in 2019 in which the driver was using a mobile phone at the wheel.
Separate figures from 2018 revealed that failure to wear a seatbelt could be attributed to one in four road deaths.
A recent trial of roadside tailgating cameras on a stretch of England’s M1 motorway captured 60,343 occasions of vehicles driving too close over the course of one year between October 2020 and September 2021.
Warning letters
“We are really excited to see the impact that this new technology has on the behaviour of drivers in Warwickshire,” said Inspector Jem Mountford, Warwickshire Police.
“During the trial the most serious breaches may be prosecuted, with others receiving warning letters, giving us the opportunity to explain how they have been caught and asking them to change their behaviour. Next time they may not be so lucky.”
Those contacted with warning letters will be asked to complete a short survey which will be used to inform National Highways’ research.
Similar trials involving AI cameras on the M4 in Berkshire last year detected more than 25,000 drivers holding a phone and nearly 7,000 people failing to wear seatbelts in just six months.
The same system was deployed in New South Wales, Australia in 2019, and the state began issuing fines to those caught by the cameras in March 2020.
As of December 2021 the cameras have checked more than 130 million vehicles and identified more than 270,000 drivers using their phones.
Mike Skoropad (Flickr)
