A new-age road camera designed to identify and track drivers who break the law by revving engines and using modified exhausts will be installed in Bradford today (18 October 2022), before travelling to Bristol, Great Yarmouth and Birmingham as part of a trial to clampdown on antisocial driving.

The Transport Secretary has confirmed these 4 locations will host the new ‘noise camera’ following a government-backed competition to tackle noise pollution on some of the loudest streets in Britain.

The new technology uses a video camera in conjunction with a number of microphones to accurately pinpoint excessively noisy vehicles as they pass by. This means that if drivers break the law by revving their engines unnecessarily or using illegal exhausts, they will be automatically detected. The camera takes a picture of the vehicle and records the noise level to create a digital package of evidence which can be used by local police to fine drivers.

Road noise is known to contribute to health problems, such as heart attacks, strokes and dementia, and the annual social cost of urban road noise, including lost productivity from sleep disturbance and health costs is estimated to be up to £10 billion.

The trials, backed by £300,000, start with the camera in Keighley, Bradford from today and will then be placed in the other 3 locations over the next 2 months.

Transport Secretary Anne-Marie Trevelyan said:

Rowdy road drivers beware – these new cameras will help the police clampdown on those who break the legal noise limits or use illegal modified exhausts to make excessive noise in our communities.

We’ll be working closely with the local authorities and police to share any findings, and I hope that this technology paves the way for quieter, peaceful streets across the country.

The department launched a competition to identify the areas to host the cameras in April and extensive testing at a private test track facility took place to perfect the technology. Now in the next phase, the locations for these roadside trials have been decided based on the impact to local residents of illegal noisy vehicles, after MPs across the country applied for the camera to be set up in their local area. If successful, the cameras could be rolled out nationwide.

Noise Abatement Society chief executive Gloria Elliott OBE said:

Excessively noisy vehicles and anti-social driving causes disturbance, stress, anxiety and pain to many. It is unsafe and disrupts the environment and people’s peaceful enjoyment of their homes and public places.

Communities across the UK are increasingly suffering from this entirely avoidable blight. The Noise Abatement Society applauds rigorous, effective, evidence-based solutions to address this issue and protect the public.

Atkins-Jacobs Joint Venture is acting as a technical consultant for the trials, providing acoustics expertise, design, modelling and asset management. The noise camera is designed and developed by MicrodB.

Atkins Jacobs Joint Venture Practice Director Andrew Pearce said:

The real-world trials of the technology solution the Atkins Jacobs JV has developed and tested on the track is an important step for the scheme towards solving a problem that affects many communities across the UK.

We are fully expecting the trial in these four chosen locations to confirm what we have seen in testing, which is a highly targeted use of technology to ensure only those motorists making excessive noise will be subject to enforcement.

The trials will continue for 2 months across the country. The department continues to work closely with all local authorities and MPs to tackle rowdy, illegal noise disruption from traffic.

The internal review will be launched shortly and will help to ensure that the system is more effective in removing officers who are not fit to serve the public.

Baroness Casey’s interim report into the culture and standards at the Metropolitan Police Service, published today (Monday 17 October 2022) raises significant concerns, including that fewer officers are being dismissed, officers with multiple allegations made against them are still serving the public and police from ethnic minorities are disproportionately represented in the misconduct system.

The Home Office review is likely to consider:

• the effectiveness of the existing system to dismiss those who fall seriously short of the standards expected by policing and the public
• the impact of the introduction of changes to misconduct panels, including legally qualified chairs
• whether forces are making use of their powers to discharge officers during their probationary period

Working with policing partners, it will also assess whether the regulatory framework for the police disciplinary system should be changed.

Home Secretary Suella Braverman said:

“The public rightly expects the highest standards of behaviour from police officers and the vast majority meet this expectation. But recently too many high-profile incidents and reports, especially in London, have damaged trust – which is unfair on the public and lets down other serving officers.

“This cannot continue. Culture and standards in the police must improve. And where an officer has fallen seriously short of these expectations, demonstrable, public action must be taken.

“I have been clear it is absolutely vital police act to restore trust, return to common-sense policing and treat the public and victims with the respect they deserve.

“I welcome the Metropolitan Police’s commitment to tackling the issues raised in the Baroness Casey report and hope this review will also help to address underlying concerns.”

The government has already overhauled the police discipline system over the last 7 years, making it more transparent, more proportionate and more accountable – for example introducing public misconduct hearings in 2015 and bringing in the Police Barred List in 2017, ensuring that officers and staff who are dismissed cannot re-join the police.

In addition, the 2-part Angiolini Inquiry is currently examining the issues raised by the conviction of then-serving officer Wayne Couzens for the murder of Sarah Everard last year. The second part is expected to scrutinise wider issues for policing and the safety of women.

Read more about the Home Office Statutory Guidance on Professional Standards, Performance and Integrity.

Marking another important milestone in the Department for Work and Pensions’ (DWP) progress towards making Pensions Dashboards a reality, the regulations outline how pension schemes will connect to the dashboard ecosystem and what providers must do to become a qualified pensions dashboard service.

Pensions Dashboards will transform how savers access their pensions facts and figures, allowing people to see what they have in their various pensions – including their State Pension – in a single place online, at any time they choose.

DWP Minister for Pensions and Growth Alex Burghart said:

We want people across the UK to have the support and information they need to make informed choices about their financial futures.

Providing a convenient place for savers to access their pension information – at the touch of a button – will help people become better informed and more engaged savers, and support them to plan more effectively for retirement.

Chris Curry, Principal of the Pensions Dashboards Programme, said:

Pensions Dashboards will make a real difference to how people view their pensions savings, and how pension providers and schemes engage with their members and customers. There are now just over 6 months until the first window opens for pension providers and schemes to begin mandatory connection to the dashboards ecosystem. Dashboards will soon become a reality, and Government, the regulators and industry will work together to make them a success.

Taking onboard feedback from industry, the DWP also announced that the Dashboard Availability Point (DAP) will be announced 6 months in advance, giving time for industry to make final preparations for the public launch of the service.

The building and initial testing of the digital dashboards architecture is already well underway, with pension schemes being urged to ensure they are “data ready” for the launch of Pensions Dashboards.

2022 marks 10 years since the introduction of Automatic Enrolment, and with a record number of British people saving for retirement, and more people managing their finances online, the need for Pensions Dashboards is stronger than ever.

Further Information

Media enquiries for this press release – 0115 965 8781

Follow DWP on: