Cameras to catch drivers on phone in Greater Manchester

The new "Heads Up" technology captures footage of passing cars before the images are processed using artificial intelligence (AI) to detect drivers who may be breaking the law.

The trial will be used by Safer Roads Greater Manchester, an organisation supported by an Oldham man who lost his partner and unborn daughter following a crash caused by a driver using his phone.

Calvin Buckley lost his partner Frankie Hough in May last year when Adil Iqbal, 23, crashed into the back of her car in the M66 in Bury after she had pulled to the side of the motorway after sustaining a flat tyre.

Calvin and Frankie had been together for nearly three years (Image: TfGM)

Iqbal, of Hope Street, Accrington, had been filming himself driving at more than 100mph, when he lost control and crashed, killing Frankie, who was pregnant at the time with her and Calvin's daughter, Neeve, and injuring one of Frankie's sons and her nephew.

Back in May, Calvin, 41, spoke publicly as part of a campaign warning drivers not to use their phones when behind the wheel.

Calvin said: "For me, personally, the devastation and loss that I’ve experienced completely changed my life. 

"I’d go as far to say it's destroyed my life, so the only thing I could do to try and make that tragedy a little bit better is to get involved in road safety work."

This new trial scheme will see the cameras capture footage of an offence being committed, before it is sent for a secondary human check to confirm that an offence has in fact occurred.

If an image shows no offence has been committed, it will be deleted immediately by the software and no further action will be taken.

The cameras will be deployed at several locations across Greater Manchester from Tuesday, September 3 on a trial basis.

This trial will look to see how many drivers still choose to break the law and will be used to refine future road safety campaigns aiming to improve compliance of mobile phone and seat belt use by drivers.

The cameras can detect drivers who are committing offences (Image: TfGM)

Research shows that a person is four times more likely to be in a crash if they are using their phone while driving and twice as likely to die in a crash if they are not wearing a seat belt.

Speaking back in May, Calvin said: "I see it every day where people are using their phones, whether it's reading a message, changing music, I think it’s an issue that is growing and the impact is massive that it can cause to people."

Calvin at the launch of the Touch.Screen campaign in May (Image: Newsquest)

Between 2014 and 2023 there were 138 people killed or seriously injured following road traffic collisions in Greater Manchester where driver distraction was a contributing factor.

Of those deaths, 23 people lost their lives in a road traffic collision where the driver was using a mobile phone.

Peter Boulton, Transport for Greater Manchester's Network Director for Highways, said: “In Greater Manchester we know that distractions and not wearing seat belts are key factors in a number of road traffic collisions on our roads which have resulted in people being killed or seriously injured.

“By utilising this state-of-the-art technology provided by Acusensus, we hope to gain a better understanding of how many drivers break the law in this way, whilst also helping to reduce these dangerous driving practices and make our roads safer for everyone.”

The Acusensus camera system has been used by police forces and local highways authorities across the UK since it was first trialled by National Highways in 2021.

Geoff Collins, General Manager at Acusensus, said: “Using our 'Heads Up' technology will allow Safer Roads Greater Manchester to better understand the levels of distracted driving and seat belt wearing on their roads. 

“The vast majority of drivers set out to be safe on every journey, but bad habits can creep in, resulting in a safety risk for everyone.  This approach is the first step in encouraging better behaviour, ensuring safety for all road users.”