Tasmanian roads could be in for some high-tech enforcement, including state-of-the-art cameras designed to detect mobile phone usage in cars.
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The Road Safety Advisory Council announced on Tuesday it was funding Tasmania Police to evaluate several new enforcement technologies, following the roll out of advanced cameras in NSW.
RSAC chair Garry Bailey said the cameras were demonstrated to the council, Tasmania Police and the Royal Automobile Club of Tasmania earlier in the year, and could assist police in fighting the problem of phone usage while driving.
"[National Transport Commission] research found that 79 per cent of drivers agree that talking on a mobile phone while driving increases the risk of being involved in a crash," he said.
"Yet 21 per cnet of drivers admit they use their mobile phones while driving.
"Development of these new technologies is a reaction to this challenge, which is also being addressed by education and other enforcement strategies."
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Mr Bailey said the RASC would only consider the technology in more detail once there was sufficient evidence to make a recommendation to the state government.
Police, Fire and Emergency Management Minister Mark Shelton said Tasmania Police was always monitoring technology that might assist with policing.
"This technology will be considered as part of a Tasmania Police project looking at a number or emerging tools to improve road safety over the coming years," he said.
"It is not possible right now to say what effect this technology would have on driver behaviour in Tasmania but we will pay close attention to evidence from other jurisdictions."