Smart traffic cameras spark privacy concerns in Amman

Jordan

Published: 2023-03-21 13:42

Last Updated: 2024-03-17 19:08


Smart traffic cameras spark privacy concerns in Amman
Smart traffic cameras spark privacy concerns in Amman

Amman Mayor, Yousef Al-Shawarbeh, announced the imminent smart traffic cameras installation in Amman to record traffic violations, such as running red lights, using phones while driving, parking randomly or throwing trash from vehicles.

The cameras will be installed on streetlights, and each will be monitoring a different violation, Shawarbeh said.

He added that these cameras will be linked to a command and control center and will also record unauthorized construction, torrential flooding and street cleanliness. The competent authorities will then handle the violations and analyze the causes of environmental, health, traffic and other issues to find optimal solutions.

The cameras will provide the Greater Amman Municipality with a database on the causes of traffic jams and violations committed in public roads and residential neighborhoods, he added.

- 'Is this legal?' -

Notably, some residents wondered if this is ‘legal’ saying that the surveillance cameras would be monitoring “all aspects of their lives and invade their privacy.”

Lawyer Sakher Khasawneh told Roya that installing cameras in the streets is not an invasion of privacy, as they are located in public areas.

“The use of cameras for the purposes of monitoring and ensuring the implementation of the provisions of the law is permissible and there is no violation of it,” he said.