Gardaí are considering using AI cameras to track motorists driving in bus lanes, not wearing a seat belt, using a mobile phone or committing other offences.
The system is expected to cost €100 million, according to an information note published on the Government's procurement website.
However, it is not clear if this kind of system will ever be implemented, as the note says Gardaí are seeking "views from the market" for now.
As The Irish Times reports, if the relevant legislation is passed by the Oireachtas, the new cameras will also be capable of detecting if drivers are using bus lanes illegally or are breaking traffic lights.
The new system will replace the current contract Gardaí have with the private provider GoSafe which operates almost 1,400 safety cameras zones around the country.
Currently, the cameras are only capable of monitoring if drivers are obeying the speed limit.
As well as watching for seat belt and mobile phone use, the new camera network may be expanded to enforce the speed limit by monitoring the time it takes a vehicle to travel a certain distance.
Last week Gardaí enforced National Slow Down Day.
During the 24 hours, GoSafe checked the speed of 140,720 vehicles on Irish roads, detecting 211 vehicles travelling more than the applicable speed limit, including motorists in Kilkenny and Wexford.
A motorist in Grevine East, Co Kilkenny, was clocked at 127 km/h in a 100 km/h zone, while another in Ferrycarrig, Co Wexford, travelled 72km/h in a 60km/h zone.
A similar system is used in Dublin’s Port Tunnel. It means drivers can be caught speeding even if they obey the speed limit as they pass the camera.
Details of the Garda requirements are contained in tendering documents published over the weekend.
The Garda said it is seeking market information on the possibility of using a private service for “the provision, installation, commissioning, maintenance and operation of safety cameras for the monitoring of vehicle speeds”.
“These proposed services may be expanded in the future (subject to legislative changes) to include, but not limited to the following; no seat belt detection, the use of mobile phones, average/variable speed detection and compliance with traffic lights and bus lane usage.”
By Kenneth Fox
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