UK gets tiny car spy cams

Tiny spy cameras small enough to fit on to lamp posts are being used to catch law-breaking motorists.

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Eyes spy
Mini cameras can be fixed to lamps, while CCTV 'learns' road

10th November 2006

The hidden lenses are capable of tracking all kinds of misdemeanours, including driving in a bus lane, making illegal turns, throwing a cigarette out of a window and ignoring 'no unloading' rules at peak times.

They send images to one of three £100,000 'Gizmo Wagons' bought by Liverpool City Council. Operators can also issue parking tickets, as the cameras are linked to automatic number plate recognition software. "The equipment is first class," a council spokesman told us. "We are working closely with the police to help keep uninsured and untaxed vehicles off the road.

"We attach small cameras to street lamps and the pictures are beamed to the control vehicle hundreds of yards away. The pictures are crystal clear and good enough to use as evidence."

Meanwhile, brainy CCTV cameras have arrived to help motorists. The new robotic eyes 'learn' a road and can spot hazardous debris, such as shredded lorry tyres strewn across a carriageway, in daylight and darkness. They also know when a driver pulls over to the hard shoulder and can automatically alert control centre staff. The cameras are being tested in Croydon, Surrey, and could go nationwide if they help keep traffic flowing.