DMP uses AI cameras to detect traffic violations in Dhaka

Prime Minister Tarique Rahman on Thursday chaired his second high-level meeting on easing traffic congestion and modernising traffic management in the capital, as Dhaka’s streets begin showing early but tangible signs of discipline under a newly launched AI-based enforcement system.

The meeting, held at the Public Administration Meeting Room of the Cabinet Division in the Bangladesh Secretariat, was attended by Road Transport and Bridges, Railways and Shipping Minister Shaikh Rabiul Alam, State Minister Habibur Rashid, Dhaka South City Corporation (DSCC) Administrator Md Abdus Salam, Dhaka North City Corporation (DNCC) Administrator Md Safiqul Islam Khan, and lawmaker Shamsur Rahman Shimul Biswas, according to Prime Minister’s Deputy Press Secretary Md Suzauddhowla.

The meeting comes as the Dhaka Metropolitan Police’s (DMP) AI-based Road Traffic Act Violation Detection System – launched earlier this month – is already prompting a visible behavioural shift among motorists at major intersections across the city.

Cameras Catching What Officers Could Not
At several key points between InterContinental Dhaka and Jahangir Gate, 25 AI-powered cameras have been installed, capable of automatically detecting five categories of traffic violations: red-light jumping, entry into closed left lanes, lane violations, wrong-way driving, and illegal parking.

The impact is already visible. Bikes, cars and CNG-run autorickshaws are now stopping before zebra crossings when lights turn red – and, more strikingly, waiting for the green before moving.

For daily commuters along corridors such as InterContinental-Farmgate, long accustomed to the disorder of Dhaka traffic, the shift is hard to miss.

Even ride-sharing motorcycles – long criticised for reckless lane changes and using footpaths as shortcuts – appear more cautious in camera zones. The cameras are installed at key intersections including Shahbagh, Banglamotor, Karwan Bazar, Bijoy Sarani, Jahangir Gate and Airport Road, with plans to expand coverage further.

Over 300 Cases in the First Week
DMP data shows more than 300 traffic cases were filed within the system’s first week of operation. Officials expect that figure to exceed 1,000 once the network is fully operational across the capital.

Violation notices are being dispatched automatically to vehicle owners through a digital prosecution system, with DMP warning that ignored notices could lead to summons and even arrest warrants under existing law.

Traffic officials attribute the immediate behavioural change to the credibility of video evidence – a deterrent that human enforcement alone has struggled to sustain.

Violations Persist
Despite the early gains, the picture remains incomplete. Wrong-way driving, signal-jumping and reckless lane-cutting continue on many roads outside the camera network. Pedestrian compliance remains especially poor, with jaywalking widespread during peak hours and footbridges and designated crossings routinely bypassed.

Authorities acknowledge that the current deployment covers a limited stretch of the city, and that systemic change will require both wider surveillance coverage and sustained enforcement.

The government’s renewed focus – with two high-level meetings now held under the Prime Minister’s direct chairmanship – signals that traffic management has moved up the policy agenda, even as the harder work of city-wide reform lies ahead.