Seatbelt rebels and drivers who cannot keep off their mobile phones continue to be caught out by Tasmania Police detection cameras.
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In the first six months of operation the mobile phone and seatbelt detection cameras have helped clock up almost $1.3 million in fines.
More than 3,300 drivers and passengers have been seen by the artificially intelligent cameras doing the wrong thing.
Since August last year, more than 1,160 drivers were caught using their mobile phones while driving, and 2,150 people were caught not wearing seatbelts.
Each driver found guilty of the offences was hit with a $390 infringement notice and lost three demerit points.
Do the mobile and seat belt detection cameras deter?
The fines and loss of demerit points are believed to deter drivers from doing the wrong thing.
In the first two months of operation 630 drivers were issued fines for using their mobile phones while driving after being photographed by the cameras.
Over the next four months, fewer drivers were caught, with 534 fines issued over the longer period.
During the same time the number of people issued fines for seatbelt offences increased.
In the first two months of operation the cameras helped issue 884 infringement notices for seatbelt offences.
Over the next four months more than 1,260 were caught.
Early research in the cameras has found that legal sanctions are insufficient to deter, due to an increasing number of people deliberately trying to avoid detection with location apps and social media pages.
Australian researchers in Safety Science found that technologies aimed at avoiding detection may encourage dangerous driving, with deterrence research showing that such technologies need to be minimised for effective compliance.
