NEW YORK – By next summer, more than 450 of New York City Transit’s 4,500 units will be equipped with a high-tech video system designed to record images of passengers on the interior of the bus as well as images from the perspective of the driver.
“Video surveillance has clearly been shown to deter criminal activity,” says Lawrence Reuter, president of New York City Transit.
One of the objectives of this $5.2 million pilot program is to record video every second of operation so authorities can review video in the event of a situation, such as took place in London during the 2005 attacks.
“We saw how London Transport video was effectively used to identify suspects in the July 2005 attacks,” says Reuter.
The second objective is to document “slip-n-fall” claims, which is a common occurrence.
“Each bus shift’s recording will be permanently deleted after 90 days unless it is needed for an investigation, according to the MTA,” says Chuck Bennett, author of “Bus Ride? Smile, You’re On Camera,” published in amNEWYORK.
MTA plans to equip 50 buses by January with an additionally equipped 400 units ready by July.