Trial to start after legislation allows new, specialised cameras to detect phone use in cars
Thu 3 May 2018 12.04 AEST
NSW is aiming to stamp out the use of phones while driving with the help of new camera technology.
New South Wales will allow the use of world-leading camera technology to detect drivers using their phones.
Several Australian jurisdictions, including Western Australia, Queensland and Victoria, have considered using automated camera technology to stamp out phone use behind the wheel.
But NSW is the first to take concrete steps to legislate, passing new powers as part of a broader suite of road safety reforms this week.
The legislation allows new, specialised cameras to be used to detect phone use, but will also allow the use from existing infrastructure – speed cameras, for example................[snip]
The dangers of phone use by drivers were brought into sharp relief earlier this year, when two police officers, Jonathan Wright and Matthew Foley, were critically injured after a car ploughed into them in Sydney’s southwest.
The driver had taken his eyes off the road for 20 seconds to look at his phone.
In total, drivers illegally using mobile phones have been involved in 184 crashes between 2012 and 2017, resulting in seven deaths and 105 injuries................[snip]
Speaking in NSW parliament on Wednesday, Nationals MP Ben Franklin said the technology would aid the efforts of police to stamp out phone use.
“While more than 40,000 infringements were issued by police for illegal mobile phone use in the 2016-17 financial year, emerging automated camera and software technology presents an opportunity to supplement police enforcement and further deter motorists from illegally using a mobile phone,” he said................[snip]