Installation of traffic cameras resumes in tRNC

The installation of the Urban Security Management System in north Cyprus has resumed after work was suspended for two months due to the outbreak of Covid-19. 

Police Communications and IT Manager Erdal Şanlıdağ, said a total of 892 cameras will be installed in Kyrenia and in Nicosia as a first step.  

When the cameras and the technological infrastructure is fully installed, it will be easier for the police to target criminals, he said.

Speaking to TAC news agency, Şanlıdağ said the cameras would scan vehicle numbers and check all information on them, such as license, vehicle safety inspection certification, or to identify a stolen vehicle. 

We will have a system that monitors the city and controls it electronically, he said.

Noting the concerns expressed by some about the level of surveillance, he said access to the information recorded would only be possible with a court order.

According to Şanlıdağ, the system will be controlled at a central location at the Police General Headquarters in Nicosia.

The cameras will  scan vehicle number plates and anyone found in violation of road traffic safety rules or driving without a license automatically will be sent a penalty notice.

He said that eventually the traffic light system will also be connected and could be used to control traffic to aid the pursuit of a criminal.

The camera system has been funded by Turkey and 75 per cent of the system had been installed, Şanlıdağ said. There will be 639 cameras in Kyrenia and 254 in Nicosia, he said.

Additionally, a protocol had been signed with Turkey to provide urban security in North Cyprus and to create greater security at the borders. A plan is also in place to install an X-ray device at customs and ports to scan vehicles.

Şanlıdağ stated that the system, which has been launched in Nicosia and Kyrenia, will provide the police with better tools to combat the increasing crime rate because of improved infrastructure.

With the cameras we will set up and the technological infrastructure we will create, we will be able to react to crime faster and respond faster. The less time the police spend on solving crime, the more confidence the public has in the police, he said.

Touching on the expectations that the crime rate will decrease after the cameras come into use, Şanlıdağ said, 

We do not expect the crime to disappear completely. Crime is constantly there. It moves in another direction due to the measures but does not disappear completely.

Şanlıdağ believes that detection of crime will definitely increase as will the solved crime rate, thanks to the cameras.

Kibris Genç TV, LGC News