AI camera spots hundreds not wearing a seatbelt in South Gloucestershire
The local authority conducted a survey at the end of last month
If you were driving in South Gloucestershire last month - you might have seen a white van mounted with cameras on a pole.
The council conducted a survey over the course of 12 hours at the end of March - and found hundreds of people driving without seatbelts or with a phone in their hand.
150 of those were detected by the AI cameras as not wearing a seatbelt, whilst seven were 'distracted by mobile phones whilst driving' during the survey period.
Figures show 425 people were injured on local roads in 2023 - 69 of those resulted in death or serious injury.
The local authority worked in partnership with Acusensus and AECOM to deploy the new roadside camera technology, and is part of their road safety team’s vision zero objective, to eliminate serious and fatal injuries to road users as a result of crashes.
How it works is all down to the AI technology.
If the AI identifies a likely offence, the images are sent on for review by at least two specially trained operators - with the photos deleted if they are reviewed to not show an offence being committed.
The equipment has been used to enforce these driving offences in other regions - with the results in South Gloucestershire hoped to inform the Road Safety Team, and their partners, for future road safety interventions.
Drivers being distracted by their phone is a key factor in causing collisions and those not wearing seatbelts are twice as likely to die in the event of a crash.
Pamela Williams, Road Safety Education and Sustainable Travel Training Manager at South Gloucestershire Council, said: “We know that distracted driving and not wearing seatbelts are contributory factors in people being killed or seriously injured in road traffic collisions.
“Working with our partners we want to reduce such dangerous driving and reduce the risks posed to both the drivers and other people. We believe that using technology like this will make people seriously consider their driving behaviour and help make sure everyone using our roads gets home safe and well.”
Dr Jamie Uff, Technical Director at AECOM and the lead research professional managing the deployment of the technology, said: “AECOM is really pleased to be continuing our work with South Gloucestershire Council and Acusensus.
"Despite the efforts of road safety organisations to change behaviour through education, the numbers of people killed or seriously injured as a result of these unsafe driving practices remains high.
"The use of technology like this makes detection of these behaviours straightforward and is providing valuable insight to the police and policy makers.”
Avon and Somerset Police said: "You are 4 times more likely to be involved in a collision if you are using a mobile phone at the wheel, and twice as likely to be killed in a collision if you aren’t wearing a seatbelt (Source: Brake Charity).
"Buckle up and put the phone away!"
For more information about road safety in South Gloucestershire, click here.