Red light for misuse of traffic cameras

The Ministry of Public Security recently issued a notice saying the implementation of the Administrative Penalty Law will be strengthened and, as part of the reform, police can impose fines on those breaking the law. But the notice stressed strict regulation of monitoring cameras to ensure they do not become "tools for imposing fines" on people.

Many media reports have cast doubts on the fines imposed on motorists for alleged traffic violations on the basis of the evidence collected by the monitoring cameras. Data show that in 2020, the total amount collected as fines for traffic violations in China was around 300 billion yuan ($47.1 billion).

In April this year, a road in Foshan, South China's Guangdong province, made news when the authorities registered 620,000 traffic violation cases, and collected more than 120 million yuan as fines. However, a probe by higher authorities showed that the road's surface was such that it was near impossible for any motorist to suddenly control speed on that stretch. The roads were repaired thereafter.

That's why some media reports have said not all monitoring cameras are being used to regulate traffic. Some apparently are being used to help fill the local governments' coffers by randomly imposing fines on drivers.

The new notice will help address this problem. The notice talks of regulating the working of monitoring cameras, from who is authorized to install them, to who has the authority to impose fines on motorists on the basis of the camera feed, and what procedure is followed.

Monitoring cameras are only meant to discipline errant drivers by imposing fines on them. They are not meant to help the traffic police, or anybody for that matter, to make money. So necessary steps should be taken to ensure traffic cameras are not used to unnecessarily harass and fine motorists.