New AI cameras will catch Greater Manchester drivers using their phone or not wearing seat belt

Footage captured by the ‘Heads Up’ technology from Acusensus is sent for a secondary human check to make a final judgement on if an offence has been committed.  

The Transport for Greater Manchester trial will see cameras, which can be mounted to a vehicle or a trailer, deployed at several locations across the region from Tuesday, September 3.

This trial will be used by Safer Roads Greater Manchester to help understand how many people are breaking the law and influence future road safety campaigns aiming to improve compliance of mobile phone and seat belt use by drivers.

Earlier this year Safer Roads Greater Manchester launched the ‘Touch.Screen’ campaign to raise awareness of the dangers of drivers becoming distracted while using a mobile phone. The campaign was supported by Calvin Buckley, whose partner Frankie Julia Hough and their unborn daughter Neeve died after a speeding driver, who was filming himself reaching speeds of 123mph on the M66 in Bury, crashed into her car which had stopped on the hard shoulder.

Calvin, from Oldham, said in May at the launch of Touch.Screen: “Two people lost their lives as a result of someone using their phone while driving, and to put it simply my life was destroyed. It’s become quite common for people to use their phone to check messages, send photos or change the music while driving. But all it takes is a split second to become distracted, and when you take your eyes off the road anything could happen. You could hit another car, a pedestrian, injure or kill yourself.”

According to TfGM, research shows that people are four times more likely to be in a crash when they use their phone while driving and twice as likely to die in a crash if they 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.”