For the very first time, the Delhi Traffic Police is preparing to set up 328 new cameras equipped to simultaneously identify various traffic infractions such as riding without a helmet, carrying three passengers on two-wheelers, failing to wear seatbelts, driving against traffic, having defective number plates and even using mobile phones while driving, across 133 locations across the city, as said by the senior traffic officials on Friday.
These new cameras will connect to a system that automatically generates challans, assist in identifying vehicles travelling in the wrong direction and uniquely target two-wheeler violations that current cameras are unable to capture.
The addition of these devices will almost double the total number of traffic cameras in the national Capital from 334 to 662, enabling the traffic police to reduce the number of personnel needed for manual checks.
Out of the 328 new cameras, 203 will be placed at 57 locations under the Red-Light Violation Detection (RLVD) initiative, while the other 125 will serve the Over-Speed Violation Detection (OSVD) program and will be set up at 76 locations. RLVD cameras are specifically positioned at crucial intersections, while OSVD cameras focus on open areas where speeding is frequently an issue.
“We have conducted surveys on the ground to identify areas with the highest incidence of speeding and other violations, finalising over 70 locations such as Civic Centre, Shanti Path, Saket metro station, Vidhan Sabha, Pampas enclave on the outer ring road, Gokulpuri flyover, Jail Road and Hanuman Temple at Kashmere Gate,” the officer explained.
Most of these cameras will be deployed on both carriageways, allowing for detection of vehicles approaching from either direction through dedicated cameras.
The survey for RLVD cameras is expected to take place soon. The completion of the project is anticipated by October of this year, the officer mentioned. “Existing cameras can only monitor a limited range of violations including speeding, red-light infractions and zebra crossing breaches. We recognised the necessity for cameras capable of detecting a wider array of traffic violations. We convened meetings with multiple companies producing advanced technology cameras. Demonstrations of their models assisted us in refining our needs,” the officer stated.
He also said that the cameras will also include capabilities for vehicle recognition, which can aid in tracking suspects involved in hit-and-run incidents. “If a suspect escapes in a vehicle with a known colour, the sophisticated cameras will identify vehicles of that same colour travelling along identical routes. Such filtering will facilitate the identification and capture of the offending vehicle. They can recognise multiple violations by a single vehicle and generate corresponding challans for each offence,” he added.
The new cameras will also provide evidence through photographs and short videos for situations involving speeding and wrong-way driving, according to the officer.
He indicated that these new cameras will also be able to identify traffic rule infringements by two-wheelers, a feature that is not commonly available in most existing traffic cameras.
Moreover, the automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) feature in the cameras will assist officials in identifying diesel vehicles older than ten years and petrol vehicles over fifteen years, both of which are prohibited in the city.
“Our traffic personnel will evaluate the data on such older and banned vehicles captured by the cameras and will take appropriate action following the regulations,” Singh noted, adding that the installation of cameras for traffic violation detection is part of the Delhi Traffic Police’s initiative.
At present, Delhi has 209 red light cameras installed at 43 sites, along with 125 speed cameras located at 66 locations.