Delegates at the popular JCT Traffic Signals Symposium in Nottingham next month will hear about more than traffic signals and traffic management, as details are shared of a revolutionary new enforcement solution which automatically identifies distracted and unsafe drivers.
Geoff Collins, General Manager of the UK division of Australian technology company Acusensus will share details of the company’s revolutionary “Heads-Up” solution which uses bespoke cameras and Artificial Intelligence-based image analysis to flag up likely violations involving people holding a phone or not wearing a seat belt. Mr Collins will detail how, when a possible case of is identified by the software, anonymised images are sent to a secure cloud for later human review, which can look at the picture to decide if a potential offence has occurred.
“There’s no doubt that speeding is a major cause of crashes on our roads, but collision statistics show that distracted driving, particularly use of a mobile phone at the wheel, is a major issue,” Mr Collins explains. “Next time you’re on the road, either driving, a passenger or a pedestrian, look out for people swerving, or randomly changing speed, and you’ll quickly see the driver gazing down at their devices thinking they can still safely control their vehicle.”
The paper will detail how Australia, the first state-wide scheme rolled out in New South Wales in 2019 has had a significant impact on driver behaviour as people discovered that the technology existed and they face the real prospect of being caught if they broke the rules. The number of mobile phone detections have dropped by a factor of six, from 1 in 82 drivers in 2019 to 1 in 478 drivers in 2021. Mr Collins will then give an update on UK trials using either a van- or trailer-based solution which detail frightening levels of non-compliance.
“As the remits of traffic and highway engineers have widened, our scope of content at the Symposium is widened too,” commented JCT Director John Nightingale, who organises the event. “I am excited to bring Geoff to the event to share this vital road safety initiative, and think our delegates will benefit from hearing what he has to say.”
It total, the two-day Symposium has 23 papers covering a wide range of topics, also including Research, Asset Management and On-Street intelligence, with a very strong offering on providing for non-motorised users. The keynote address is provided by leading behavioural scientist and commentator Rory Sutherland and his colleague Pete Dyson, who together authored the book Transport for Humans: Are We Nearly There Yet?
The 28th JCT Traffic Signals Symposium takes place on Thursday 14 and Friday 15 September at Nottingham Trent University, with the MOVA User Group and welcome barbecue the day before.
To book a place and find out more about the event, click here.
(Picture – Acusensus/Hampshire Police)
