Crime busting cameras go live
A £200,000 network of crime-busting CCTV cameras went live across Inverclyde on Monday 28 October.
The new network, funded and operated by Inverclyde Council and Police Scotland, features state of the art, 4G technology with images from the cameras being stored in the Cloud.
Councillor Michael McCormick, Convener of Inverclyde Council’s Environment & Regeneration Committee, said, “We are taking an innovative approach by using a 4G system rather than a radio or fibre-optic network. It will be fast and flexible and allow us to deploy cameras where they’re most needed without having to run cables from the camera to the monitoring suite.
“There is an ongoing problem with fly tipping, for example, and this new system means that we will be able to quickly install cameras at locations where, up until now, dumb dumpers have been safe from surveillance.”
Councillor Tommy McVey, Chair of the Local Police & Fire Scrutiny Committee, said, “There’s no doubt about how valuable CCTV is in terms of preventing crime and helping the police detect crime and prosecute criminals.
“The new system allows cameras to be moved where and when required so the four mobile cameras can be used to monitor crime hot spots and any other place where it’s suspected illegal or antisocial activity is happening. It will also mean safer streets for local people and will help to reassure them when they are out and about.”
The system has 40 fixed cameras and four mobile cameras. The majority are located in town centres or at busy points on the road network. Rather than transmitting along a fixed cable to the CCTV monitoring suite at Greenock Police Station, the cameras now record images to the Cloud using the 4G mobile network.
This means monitoring staff can see the recordings in real time and can pull footage from the Cloud when needed. Previously the images were recorded on a large bank of video recorders.
The new cameras have motion sensors so that they only record when movement is detected. This means that when council staff and police officers are reviewing an incident, they don’t have to watch hours of footage where potentially nothing is happening.
The three CCTV vans, operated by Inverclyde Council’s community wardens, are also being upgraded with 4G cameras connected to the Cloud and the monitoring suite. This will give better coverage of incidents and will allow the cameras to be controlled and monitored by the CCTV operators remotely as well as by the wardens on site.
Incidents can now be seen in real time which can be especially important for monitoring public events.