Filenews 25 January 2022 - by Michalis Hadjivasilis
There is a delay in sending the first extrajudicials by the Traffic Police cameras, while from today we are entering the next phase of the system, which will last six months.
Three months has now been completed from the day the cameras were operated and under the contract, the contractor is obliged within the next six months to supply the state with another 20 fixed cameras and another 16 mobiles. However, the green light for the next phase will be lit by the Department of Electromechanical Services, which is the contracting service on behalf of the state, after evaluating the current phase, which is the pilot phase.
The delay in sending the extrajudicials, within 25 days after they officially began to report, brings accumulations of complaints, since the cameras continue to record violations. As those involved assure, the delay is due to procedural reasons and in the next few days the first extrajudicials will begin to leave.
As it was duly explained, from the moment a camera records an offence, numerous checks must be made in order for the out-of-court case to reach the right offender, with the right fine. This is because a complaint may be double or triple, i.e. contain two or even three offences, so the correct penalties with the correct penalty points must be taken into account.
Also, the details of the offenders must be checked by the Central Information Warehouse (CAP) to be correct. Recently a problem arose because a state agency has registered a citizen that resides on such and such a street with Greek, the other with English and a third service other information. From the office of the Commissioner for the Protection of Personal Data, it has been stressed to everyone that it is imperative that paperwork must not be sent to the wrong person. From the point of view of the Traffic Police, it was reported that indeed the contractor company took longer than expected to prepare the first out-of-court documents, which it attributed to the procedures, while the warnings are now being sent normally.
Meanwhile, according to the assistant traffic director, Harry Evripidou, the cameras, four mobile and four fixed, record about 800 violations per day. Most of the mobiles involve speeding, while the fixed cameras report those who pass in red, or speed, or do not wear a helmet or park on the yellow line. As for the new points where the 16 new cameras will be placed, these have been selected on the basis of the risk and frequency of accidents.
