On July 31, the “Airborne Traffic Police,” the multi-rotor drones, were formally put into use in Jinan City of Shandong Province. Their main purpose was to photograph drivers who were using phones illegally or making phone calls while driving. This is the first time that Jinan has used police drones to capture traffic violators. The traffic police team has invested in four drones to cooperate with law enforcement. Beijing Youth Daily reported that, half an hour into their debut, five illegal activities were captured on the spot.
“At 7 o’clock in the morning, at one traffic light crossroad, a multi-rotor drone carrying a high-definition camera was hovering around and ‘observing’ the car drivers to see whether there were illegal activities such as using mobile phones and making phone calls. Not long after, a white car appeared in the surveillance video connected to the drone. While waiting at the red light, the driver’s right hand was on the steering wheel and his left hand picked up the phone to play. The drone repeatedly adjusted the angle and focal length, while recording the whole process of the man playing with the mobile phone while driving. Soon, the traffic police at the traffic light intersection found the man and fined him for the violation.
“The Jinan Municipal Public Security Bureau formed the police aviation team, which started trial operations in April of this year. The members of the police team have superb drone flight skills and practical experience in traffic management. The team has carried out trial operations for nearly three months and the team members have accumulated more than 200 hours of safe flight time. The drone and its videotaping device are specially designed for collecting evidence of both dynamic and static traffic violations.”
Source: Beijing Youth Daily, August 1, 2018
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