Passengers Give The Thumbs Up To Taxi CCTV

A cabbie who made the move to install CCTV surveillance equipment in his taxi in order to try and put a stop to anti-social behaviour has revealed that he believes that he made the right move.

Darren Pike, of Exeter, who runs his own taxi business- Alpha Taxis, installed the cameras at the end of 2010, with the backing of local police and the local council- who urged other private hire companies to follow in his footsteps.

Recent figures have shown that the number of attacks against cabbies are on the rise, and Mr Pike feels that the installation of the surveillance equipment appears to have had a positive impact on his firm at least, and the equipment has been met with nothing but praise from those who hire Alpha Taxi’s services. Last August alone, there were 7 assaults on cabbies in the area- with some victims left with severe injuries.

Mr Pike commented:

“It’s all been very positive and no one seems bothered by it.
“It’s second nature to have cameras everywhere you go as crime prevention has become a big thing nowadays.
“I had one confrontational situation recently which was completely diffused when I pointed out the camera.”

Mr Pike confirmed that although he had faced questioning from one police official, he had heard nothing more on the matter. He also confirmed plans to install surveillance equipment throughout his fleet of vehicles in the future.

Cost Of Norfolk CCTV Network Slammed

According to recently released figures, local councils within the Norfolk region have ploughed nearly £5 million into CCTV surveillance equipment over the duration of the last 4 years, and many people are less than happy about the revelations.

The huge sum, which was spent on the installation and operation of the cameras, has led to calls for local council’s to look into the possibility of sharing resources, especially with so many presently facing huge spending cuts.

The publication of the figures came about after a huge number requesting details via the Freedom of Information Act, and the worst culprits for huge expenditure was Norwich City Council, who spent over £1.5 million on their surveillance equipment- which consists of around seventy cameras.

Campaign Group Big Brother Watch is less than impressed with the findings, and their director commented:

“Public money is being wasted on snooping surveillance that does next to nothing to prevent or solve crime.
“We are being watched more than ever before and we’re being ripped off into the bargain.”

Although they have come under criticism, Norfolk City Council insist that the surveillance equipment is vital in keeping the public safe and in police investigations. However, one council official has welcomed the possibility of resource sharing in the future.

CCTV Helps To Capture Thousands Of Suspects

Recently released figures have revealed that CCTV surveillance equipment helped the Metropolitan Police to snare over 2,000 wanted suspects last year.

Over 2,500 suspects- which included those suspected of serious crimes such as murder and rape- were spotted and subsequently identified though the use of the state-of-the art surveillance equipment.

A large number suspected of robbery, burglary and GBH were also snared, and police officials are hailing the equipment a great success.

The CCTV surveillance equipment which contributed to the identification of the suspects were a combination of cameras owned by road safety organisations, private companies, local police forces and council authorities.

Images of suspects were then published on the Metropolitan’s Caught On Camera site in order to encourage members of the public to help them with identification.

However, as there are constant concerns regarding the use of CCTV cameras throughout the UK, the Met were quick to reassure the public that any images obtained would be used in an appropriate manner.

Speaking of the success of the cameras, a police official commented:

“We’re really grateful to the public who’ve helped us identify many wanted people and I’d urge them to visit our caught on camera website to help us identify even more.”