The City’s Safety and Security Directorate are using an integrated application on hand held devices, which will fast track the issuing of notices for traffic and by-law contraventions to offenders. The application will allow officers to optimise their enforcement of road and community safety.
The mobile application on hand held devices allows for improved efficiency related to the issuing of contravention and compliance notices, which includes traffic fines.
The new application, which is being managed in-house, allows for a City-owned contravention case management system to become a central hub for all contravention notices issued. This new application will be used by all the City’s enforcement departments that are involved in the issuing of contravention notices and includes Traffic Services, the Metro Police and Law Enforcement Departments. What makes this application unique, is that notices and fines are being issued with a City device on a City mobile application.
‘The digital application allows officers to use the latest technology to be able to improve safety on the roads and in the communities. This demonstrates the city’s ability to develop advanced mobile applications, which is linked to the City’s Emergency, Policing Incident Command System. It’s also about working smarter as officers save time by not having to issue a written notice as the manual notice book is replaced by this device,’ said the City’s Mayoral Committee Member for Safety and Security, Alderman JP Smith.
The application on the hand-held device does not only have scanning capabilities, allowing Vehicle License Disc and Driver’s License scanning, but has built in GPS technology that allows for the correct allocation of notices to magisterial areas. The built in camera will allow the officer to record digital evidence related to the contravention resulting in fewer disputes at court. Additionally, the technology will have appropriate decryption of information to protect public information, and will allow for other future digital integrations.
The advantages of the mobile application includes:
- User friendly guided contravention capturing process
- An increase in the administrative capturing of data
- Reducing the margin of human error
- Reducing capturing time
- Dropdown selections for ease of use
- Access to additional information stored in the back-end system for future reference
In addition to the above, the application will assist with the easy identification of fraudulent vehicle discs and driver’s licenses. Call volumes to the control room for vehicle and offender/driver detail confirmation will also be reduced and valuable information stored electronically.
The Safety and Security Directorate currently has more than a 100 devices in operation that have access to the application and it is envisaged that the City will roll out 1 356 further devices subject to budgetary provisions.
‘The development and implementation of mobile applications in the safety environment will ultimately contribute towards a safer community as those who are in contravention of the Road Safety Act and relevant by-laws are brought to book. The application saves time and resources, which is to the advantage of residents and the City,’ added Alderman Smith.