Public Works: AI-Powered Cameras to Detect Violations, Not Collect Fines

Al-Taj News – Spokesperson for the Ministry of Public Works and Housing Omar Al-Maharmeh said Saturday that the ministry will use cameras equipped with artificial intelligence technologies to detect truck violations, particularly violations related to axle loads.

Al-Maharmeh added that the primary purpose of using these technologies is to detect violations, prevent their recurrence, and reduce the harm and damage caused to roads, stressing that the objective is not to collect fines.

He explained that axle loads and transport-related violations are a major factor in the damage caused to roads, particularly the Desert Highway and Al-Naqab Road, which witness transport traffic from the Port of Aqaba toward Amman and various governorates, and sometimes to other countries.

He pointed out that some truck drivers deliberately raise some movable axles while driving in order to reduce tire wear, which puts greater pressure on the road and causes damage to it. He noted that the cameras will help monitor and track these violations and pursue the trucks committing them.

Al-Maharmeh stressed that the cameras will not directly issue violations or order enforcement action, explaining that human personnel will intervene to verify that an actual violation has occurred after it is detected, before legal measures are taken against the truck.

He noted that among the technologies that could also assist the ministry is identifying locations where oils and petroleum products have spilled onto the asphalt, given the risks they pose to vehicles and the significant damage they cause to asphalt, and working to address these locations as quickly as possible.

He pointed out that the road network under the ministry’s jurisdiction extends for approximately 15,000 kilometers, including around 3,500 kilometers of highways and roads connecting cities and governorates, and that most of them are in good condition and have been subject to maintenance and rehabilitation projects in recent years.

He explained that the project to maintain the Desert Highway in the Al-Qweira area toward the customs post and Wadi Al-Yutum is nearing completion, which means the completion of maintenance of the entire Desert Highway from the Seventh Circle to the city of Aqaba.

He added that technically distinguishing between damage caused by axle loads, oil spills, or other causes is “very easy” for the ministry, explaining that laboratory analyses determine the cause of the damage.