Hampshire and Thames Valley Police forces deployed the Sensor Test Vehicle, which is made by Aecom, on the A34 and A303 earlier this month.

The van is equipped with two cameras, which capture suspected offences. One of them is set at a shallow angle to identify mobile phone use to the ear, and to see whether the seatbelt is going across the body or hanging down behind the driver.

The second camera has a steep view, providing visibility of mobile phone use low down, to detect behaviour such as texting near the steering wheel or door. This second camera also gives further evidence of seatbelt use by checking the presence of the lap portion of the belt and confirming that the seatbelt is clipped into the buckle.

All images of possible offences are automatically captured and sent to be checked by two separate AECOM teams in the UK, before being provided to the police for their review.

The process has been designed to ensure that only clear offences, which...