CCTV cameras are becoming more common in public places as well as homes. There are websites online where you can watch live streams of CCTV footage from famous landmarks around the world, and even watch back to footage taken from moving trains on their journeys across landscapes in Norway, Canada and Japan. Some people find this way of viewing places from their homes interesting, and live streaming from these vehicles are expected to soon become viewable.
In Birmingham at the beginning of July this year, live CCTV streaming from INSIDE public transport was a world first. Not for public viewing, but in the interest of public safety.
With more moving vehicles enabling internet connections, this technology is becoming easier to implement. In the trail carried out on a test bus, the CCTV cameras on board were streamed by a monitoring centre, where technicians viewed the video feed, looking out for suspicious activity.
As part of the test, a pickpocket was seen in action on the top deck of the bus. The monitoring centre were then able to initiate a rapid police response team to intercept the bus on its route. The pickpocket was then arrested at the scene.
This technology gives the police a chance to maximise their resources and improve public safety and security.
It is hoped that this technology will also encourage more people to use public transport as it hopes live CCTV streaming will increase reliability and safety on board.
Find out more about this trail in another article here.