Traffic cameras equipped with artificial intelligence deployed across Devon and Cornwall have successfully contributed to a drop in dangerous driving.
The sophisticated surveillance technology recorded a 50 per cent reduction in seatbelt violations and a 33 per cent decline in mobile phone use whilst driving during August 2024 assessments at three separate sites.
These AI-enhanced systems, known as Acusensus "Heads-Up" cameras, have identified 10,000 traffic violations over the previous 12 months.
The cameras are used as part of extended trials conducted in partnership with Devon and Cornwall Police and the Vision Zero South West road safety initiative.
Do you have a story you'd like to share? Get in touch by emailing motoring@gbnews.uk
The AI speed cameras have contributed to a drop in dangerous driving offences
|VISION ZERO SOUTH WEST
Enforcement technology has been operational across various locations throughout both counties for three years, forming part of a comprehensive strategy to improve road safety standards and reduce traffic casualties in the region.
The Acusensus technology employs dual cameras capturing high-resolution images from overhead and front-facing angles as vehicles pass monitoring points.
AI algorithms analyse these photographs to identify potential violations involving mobile phone usage or seatbelt non-compliance.
Following initial AI detection, images undergo verification by a minimum of two human reviewers based in the UK who confirm whether an offence has occurred.
| VISION ZERO SOUTH WEST
Verified violations result in drivers receiving either warning letters or notices of intended prosecution, determined by the severity of the infringement.
Adrian Leisk, Devon and Cornwall Police's Head of Road Safety, said: "We used the cameras at the same location on the A38 at Landrake during 2023, 2024 and 2025.
"The year-on-year data shows a prolonged and significant reduction in both seatbelt and mobile phone offences, which is really encouraging.
"Around a third of all fatal collisions nationally involve someone who wasn't wearing a seatbelt and not wearing one means you are twice as likely to die in the event of a serious collision."
LATEST DEVELOPMENTS:
The enforcement programme has demonstrated that fewer than one per cent of monitored vehicles were found to be committing offences, indicating widespread compliance amongst motorists.
Year-on-year comparisons at a consistent monitoring point on the A38 at Landrake revealed sustained reductions in both categories of violations between 2023 and 2025, suggesting the technology's deterrent effect extends beyond immediate enforcement periods.
Geoff Collins, general manager of Acusensus UK, stated: "This long-term operational project has proved that not only can we show the size of the problem, but we can effectively deal with it too.
"We are actively making the roads safer, as shown by the reduction of risky behaviours that we see."
AI speed cameras have caught thousands of drivers since being piloted in 2021 | TRANSPORT FOR GREATER MANCHESTERPolice and Crime Commissioner Alison Hernandez, who chairs the Vision Zero South West partnership, acknowledged progress whilst emphasising ongoing challenges.
She said: "While these figures are certainly going in the right direction, there is a lot more work to be done. These aren't just numbers, these are lives turned upside down by unimaginable tragedy and trauma."
The partnership has established ambitious targets to reduce road casualties by half before 2030, ultimately aiming for zero deaths and serious injuries on regional roads.
Recent statistics demonstrate encouraging progress, with killed and seriously injured figures declining from 790 in 2022 to 754 in 2023, then further decreasing to 678 in 2024.
Commissioner Hernandez added: "We will continue to work hard, using innovation and collaboration as we strive to achieve this ambitious target. Road safety is everyone's responsibility."