Cyprus Transport Ministry announces road safety improvements

On Thursday, June 25, the Minister of Transport, Alexis Vafeades, announced new initiatives to improve road safety during the first session of the new Parliamentary Committee on Transport. The Ministry plans to install artificial intelligence cameras designed to detect drivers using mobile phones while operating vehicles. This action will initially be implemented as a pilot program accompanied by public information efforts. Furthermore, the Ministry will relocate mobile camera vans from highways to urban centers, where statistics indicate a higher frequency of fatal accidents. On highways, the government intends to transition to a system using fixed cameras at the start and end of specific segments to calculate average vehicle speed. Other topics addressed during the session included traffic congestion, safety inspections for school buses, major infrastructure projects, public transport, and vehicle recalls. The Minister highlighted that distracted driving, particularly mobile phone usage, remains a primary cause of serious road accidents in Cyprus.