What new road cameras will be able to catch you doing
Sydney’s traffic cameras will soon be watching drivers’ every move – even honing in to catch mobile phone use at the wheel.
A law was passed on Wednesday allowing existing toll cameras to target driver offences.
The number of people looking intently at their phones while behind the wheel has been a source of increasing concern for police and road safety authorities.
The NSW government has just changed the law so that toll road cameras can be used to target people driving while using their phone.
“When we’ve got the technology 100 per cent right, we can turn it on and catch people using their mobile phones,” NSW Roads Minister Melinda Pavey said.
As well as toll camera, other authorised devices that could be watching drivers’ every move include red light cameras, speed cameras, mobile speed cameras and T2 lane cameras.
The decision will potentially add thousands of cameras to a Big Brother-like network that will record what drivers are doing inside their cars.
“What this parliament has done is give the minister unfettered powers to turn on every camera in every street,” NSW Shadow Roads Minister Jodi McKay said.
“We believe that people should be discouraged from using their mobile phone and cameras could be used, but people should know about it.”
It appears unlikely that there will be individual warnings, and the Roads Minister says that’s just too bad.
“Whatever warnings we’re putting out, people are ignoring that,” she said.
Roadside drug testing for cocaine will also now be introduced as part of a promised package to reduce the road toll.
