SYDNEY (Reuters) - Australia's state of New South Wales set up cameras to monitor mobile phones on Sunday in the hope of reducing road deaths by a third in two years, transport authorities said.
According to the state transport authority, the world's first cameras to detect mobile phones will work 24 hours a day, in all weather conditions, to detect a driver using a mobile phone.
The law allows New South Wales to call or receive voice calls while driving, but only with the use of headphones. The law prohibits all other mobile phone uses while driving, such as video calls, social media use, and photography.
According to official statistics, 329 people have been killed so far this year in road accidents in New South Wales, compared to 354 in all of 2018. The state wants to reduce the death toll from road accidents by 30 percent by 2021.
The state transport authority said mobile phone detection cameras use artificial intelligence to review images and monitor illegal use of the phone.
In the first three months after monitoring systems are in place, warning letters will be sent to offending motorists, after which the penalty will be a standard fine of $ 233 and a fine of $ 310 in school districts.