The Watchman Casualty Reduction Scheme is a

traffic calming Traffic calming uses physical design and other measures to improve safety for motorists, car drivers, pedestrians and bicycle-friendly, cyclists. It has become a tool to combat speeding and other unsafe behaviours of drivers. It aims to encour ...

measure used in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

. The scheme comprises various methods to reduce traffic speed including cameras and

Variable Message Signs A variable- (also changeable-, electronic-, or dynamic-) message sign or message board, often abbreviated VMS, VMB, CMS, or DMS, and in the UK known as a matrix sign, is an electronic traffic sign often used on roadways to give travelers info ...

which flash the speed limit when a driver is going too fast. The cameras do not issue fines or penalty points to the driver, but record the number plate, speed and time of vehicles. The scheme has been very effective on keeping general traffic speeds below the limit of the road. Each Watchman System comes standard with high-speed communications allowing access to live and recorded video images without having to physically visit the unit. This feature allows traffic managers remote access from a PC, laptop or dedicated control room. Each unit can be programmed to take appropriate automatic action upon detecting a certain speed of vehicle, for example, automatically issuing a letter to the owners of vehicles traveling in excess of 50 mph on a particular stretch of road, or to capture on video the passage of vehicles driving above a certain speed. They work by constantly emitting radar signals to detect speeding vehicles, similar to

traffic enforcement cameras A traffic enforcement camera (also a red light camera, speed camera, road safety camera, bus lane camera, depending on use) is a camera which may be mounted beside or over a road or installed in an enforcement vehicle to detect motoring offense ...

. They have two cameras, one is used to monitor the road, and the other records the number plate of vehicles, by employing the Number Plate Recognition System. Since these cameras have rear facing lenses as well, one can not avoid them by slowing down as they approach the camera. In addition to recording the information of speeding vehicles, a Watchman System can also be used for long-term analysis of traffic movement by counting each passing vehicle and registering its speed. Details of up to 2 million vehicles can be stored into its hard disk, in essence creating a traffic census for the stretch of road. It can also be used to track suspect vehicles after crimes.

References

{{reflist Automatic number plate recognition Road traffic management Speed camera types used in the United Kingdom Traffic enforcement systems

See also

References