Latest news with #dashcams
Yahoo
a day ago
- Yahoo
Cape Breton regional police adding cameras for officers, cars and downtown streets
Police officers, patrol cars and even some streets in the former towns of the Cape Breton Regional Municipality are expected to be outfitted with video recording equipment sometime this fall. Bodycams, dashcams and surveillance equipment will make citizens and officers safer and provide better evidence in court cases, Chief Robert Walsh said Tuesday after a meeting of the municipality's board of police commissioners. The street cameras will likely deter some crimes and help police solve others that may have happened or are in progress, he said. "If there was a critical incident such as an armed robbery or an active shooter, our communications centre could access that video livestream in real time, get the information, the images, and provide that detail to our officers in real time, so we have a better situational awareness and a better response for police," Walsh said. The public may have some concerns about privacy, but police will have policies that should alleviate those worries, he said. "The cameras in downtown cores and at key intersections would only be used for an investigative purpose and we want to reassure the public that they are not monitored continuously," the chief said. Bodycams and dashcams will make police operations more transparent, Walsh said. However, he said policies are still being developed on when those cameras can be activated or deactivated by officers. He said guidance on that may be coming from the province. The force is getting quotes for all the cameras this summer. Depending on cost, it plans to buy up to nine dashcams for patrol cars, more than 120 bodycams for officers and up to 50 street surveillance systems. Street cameras will not only go in downtown Sydney, they'll also go up in the former towns of North Sydney, Sydney Mines, Glace Bay, New Waterford, Dominion and Louisbourg. The police budget this year includes about $700,000 for equipment, much of which will be for cameras and software. Walsh has said in a previous interview that the cost of the software includes unlimited cloud-based data storage that will be able to handle video files. CBRM Coun. Glenn Paruch, who chairs the police commission, said the cameras are a good idea. "It's change, but I think change is needed here in the city," he said. Privacy concerns There will always be some people with concerns about their privacy on public streets, but some downtown businesses already have their own cameras trained on their stores. That doesn't seem to deter shoppers, Paruch said. The difference is that police surveillance cameras will only be viewed when a crime has been committed or is in progress, he said. "If there was no incident, they can't just go use that without having proper cause." Walsh said Cape Breton police will use Charlottetown as a model for its camera system. Police there have labelled all street cameras with the city's E-Watch brand to notify the public about the presence of video surveillance. MORE TOP STORIES
CBC
a day ago
- CBC
Cape Breton regional police adding cameras for officers, cars and downtown streets
Police officers, patrol cars and even some streets in the former towns of the Cape Breton Regional Municipality are expected to be outfitted with video recording equipment sometime this fall. Bodycams, dashcams and surveillance equipment will make citizens and officers safer and provide better evidence in court cases, Chief Robert Walsh said Tuesday after a meeting of the municipality's board of police commissioners. The street cameras will likely deter some crimes and help police solve others that may have happened or are in progress, he said. "If there was a critical incident such as an armed robbery or an active shooter, our communications centre could access that video livestream in real time, get the information, the images, and provide that detail to our officers in real time, so we have a better situational awareness and a better response for police," Walsh said. The public may have some concerns about privacy, but police will have policies that should alleviate those worries, he said. "The cameras in downtown cores and at key intersections would only be used for an investigative purpose and we want to reassure the public that they are not monitored continuously," the chief said. Bodycams and dashcams will make police operations more transparent, Walsh said. However, he said policies are still being developed on when those cameras can be activated or deactivated by officers. He said guidance on that may be coming from the province. The force is getting quotes for all the cameras this summer. Depending on cost, it plans to buy up to nine dashcams for patrol cars, more than 120 bodycams for officers and up to 50 street surveillance systems. Street cameras will not only go in downtown Sydney, they'll also go up in the former towns of North Sydney, Sydney Mines, Glace Bay, New Waterford, Dominion and Louisbourg. The police budget this year includes about $700,000 for equipment, much of which will be for cameras and software. Walsh has said in a previous interview that the cost of the software includes unlimited cloud-based data storage that will be able to handle video files. CBRM Coun. Glenn Paruch, who chairs the police commission, said the cameras are a good idea. "It's change, but I think change is needed here in the city," he said. Privacy concerns There will always be some people with concerns about their privacy on public streets, but some downtown businesses already have their own cameras trained on their stores. That doesn't seem to deter shoppers, Paruch said. The difference is that police surveillance cameras will only be viewed when a crime has been committed or is in progress, he said. "If there was no incident, they can't just go use that without having proper cause." Walsh said Cape Breton police will use Charlottetown as a model for its camera system. Police there have labelled all street cameras with the city's E-Watch brand to notify the public about the presence of video surveillance.
Malay Mail
10-06-2025
- Automotive
- Malay Mail
Dashcams, seatbelt sensors may be mandatory: Transport minister eyes stricter bus safety rules after deadly crash
GEORGE TOWN, June 10 — The Transport Ministry is looking into making dashboard cameras (dashcams) compulsory in heavy vehicles as part of efforts to boost road safety. Its Minister Anthony Loke Siew Fook said stricter enforcement measures, including onboard video cameras and safeguards for speed limiters, is needed as the devices have often been found to be tampered with, after regular checks have been made. 'Video cameras are not compulsory now but we need to look into it to improve safety,' he said at a press conference after officiating CruiseWorld Malaysia 2025 here today. Loke said while speed limiters are already mandatory in heavy vehicles, they are often tampered with after passing inspections. 'The device is installed in heavy vehicles to prevent them from speeding above the speed limit but what we are seeing is that the devices are often tampered with,' he said. He said operators would often reinstall or reset speed limiters just to clear the Computerised Vehicle Inspection Centre (Puspakom), then disable them later so the vehicles can exceed speed limits. He said more robust enforcement is needed to prevent such manipulation. Loke said the chartered bus that crashed and killed 15 Universiti Pendidikan Sultan Idris (UPSI) students did not have seatbelts for its passengers. 'However, in the East-West Highway incident, the bus was built in 2013, it is 12 years old, so it does not have seatbelts,' he said. He said seatbelts have been mandatory in buses built from 2020 onwards. 'We have laws that make it mandatory to install and wear seatbelts but the challenge is to ensure compliance,' he added. Loke said the ministry may consider requiring seatbelt sensors that prevent buses from moving unless passengers buckle up. 'In cars, if we don't wear the seatbelts, it will beep. So we can look into making it mandatory that the driver ensures all passengers put their seatbelts on or the bus will not move,' he said. He emphasised that safety laws are already in place, but the real issue is enforcement and compliance by operators and passengers. Loke said new regulations often face resistance from industry players who cite rising costs. 'We don't want that when we make something mandatory, the operators complain that they are affected, that the new measures are a burden and incurred additional costs,' he said. He said safety measures are not meant to burden but to save lives. 'So, for example, the wearing of seatbelts in new buses is already mandatory but there was lack of compliance by the operators and passengers,' he said. He said his ministry will review ways to improve enforcement and ensure existing safety rules are followed.
