Cyprus plans AI cameras to catch phone use and seatbelt offences
The Transport Ministry has opened public consultation on a bill allowing fixed cameras to book drivers for holding a phone or skipping a seatbelt, even without a speeding offence.
As reported by Cyprus Mail, the Transport Ministry has opened public consultation on a bill that would let AI-equipped cameras issue fines for mobile phone use and seatbelt offences on their own. Until now, drivers could only be booked for these violations if officers first caught them speeding or running a red light.
The ministry is preparing the plan together with the police and intends to place fixed cameras at locations in towns. Under the proposal, the equipment would identify phone use or a missing seatbelt directly from the images it captures, alongside detecting speeding. The first such camera is set to be installed on Grivas Digenis Avenue in Nicosia after the bill passes into law.
The bill amends the 2001 law on photographic detection devices, adding illegal use of a mobile phone under Regulation 58(14)(a) of the 1984 Motor Vehicles and Road Traffic Regulations, and failure to wear a seatbelt under articles 14, 15 and 15A of the 1986 Road Safety Law. Current fixed and mobile cameras cannot handle these offences and run on software without AI support; they will not be affected by the change.
What it means for residents
If the bill becomes law, the camera network on Cypriot roads stops being only about speed and red lights. Habits that many drivers treat as harmless — a phone in hand at a junction or a belt left unfastened — would become grounds for a fine on their own, without any other traffic violation involved.
- Check your routine: hands-free setups and a fastened belt become worth the trouble, since a camera can now trigger on those alone.
- Watch the first locations: Grivas Digenis Avenue in Nicosia is the pilot spot, so drivers using that route should expect the new checks first.
- Expect the paperwork to follow: fines would arrive by post like existing camera tickets, so correct address details with the authorities matter.
This text is written from the source article and is not a translation of it.
