By year's end, authorities in Schaerbeek will be equipped with new devices which will make them capable of quadrupling the number of speed checks currently being carried out, according to the municipality's mayor.
After the most recent crash in the Brussels municipality left one woman seriously injured at the weekend, mayor Bernard Clerfayt said Schaerbeek police will soon be better equipped to fight against speeding drivers, according to BX1.
"By the end of the year, we will be the first police zone to have our own lidar," Clerfayt said, referring to a speed-enforcement device.
"This means we will be able to quadruple our capacity for speed checks," he added.
While the mayor did not give details about the municipality's future acquisitions, the most recent lidar devices are capable of completely automating speed-enforcement procedures, from speed detection to vehicle and driver identification.
The municipality has been under media and public scrutiny after a series of high-profile road accidents stirred residents into action, particularly after a series of accidents involving children.
While, according to the mayor, the number of road incidents has remained stable in the municipality —at, on average, "one minor incident per day" and "one serious incident each month"—, it was the attention of the media which had increased.
Gabriela Galindo
The Brussels Times
