English Motorways to Benefit from 3D Technology
Monday 30 January 2012 Back to Blog
The Department of Transport (DfT) has awarded police forces across England funding of £2.7m to install 3D scanning technology on the country's motorway network.
The idea is that should a crash occur, the technology will scan the area providing crash investigators and police a 3D map of the crash site. This will allow them to locate and clear the area of debris much faster than the current method of searching for debris manually.
Additional funding will come from the National Policing Improvements Agency.
The plan to implement the new technology is following a policy known as 'CLEAR'. The idea is by reducing delays on motorways, traffic will move much faster and the economy will benefit.
Roads minister Mike Penning said: "There is nothing more frustrating than being stuck in a traffic jam for hours on end. But even worse than that is the shocking £1 billion cost of those lost hours for our economy. That is why we are determined to improve the clear-up of accidents so we can get our motorways re-opened as quickly as possible.
"Today's £2.7 million DfT funding award will see 3D laser scanners rolled out quickly where they are needed most. This will benefit drivers by reducing incident clear up times by 39 minutes on average.
"I would like to thank police forces for seizing this opportunity to purchase laser scanners and contributing funds towards the purchase. This clearly demonstrates how forces are committed to helping to keep traffic moving, in support of economic growth, as well as continuing to deliver their vital role in ensuring the safety and security of all road users. I would also like to thank the National Policing Improvement Agency for providing a contribution to the funding."
Given there were 18,000 partial and full motorway closures in 2010 the technology if it works will be welcome indeed.