New smart cameras, optimised to catch people using electronic devices while driving, will be used by police from today onwards.
Texting drivers will have a greater chance of getting caught, as the police are now using special cameras, optimised to recognise the shape of a mobile device in someone’s hand, to catch them.
The cameras will record the person’s face and the licence plate of the car. A police officer will then assess the image to make sure the camera is correct, before sending a fine to the owner.
If the owner of the car was not the one driving, they can pass the fine onto the offender by identifying them to the police (like a snitch). Last year, 80,000 fines were given out for calling while driving.
At the beginning of this year, the police had announced a trial of these smart cameras.”It is a very new device, specially developed to look through the windshield,” the National Police then told RTL News.“With smart software you can see if someone is holding a phone or another electronic device.”
Getting caught holding an electronic device, such as a phone, tablet, or navigating device, is enough to receive a 240 euro fine. Currently, the smart cameras are only being used by the national police unit and the Central Netherlands police unit. The police will also be continuing to check that motorists are obeying the rules of the road in the usual way.
“Too many deaths and injuries still occur in traffic in general and by distraction in particular,” says project leader Egbert-Jan van Hasselt.
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Feature Image: StockSnap/Pixabay
