'Frankly shocking': West Midlands Mayor Richard Parker warns drivers after AI cameras catch NEARLY 19,000 violations in two weeks

Richard Parker, Mayor of the West Midlands, has called AI road safety trial results "frankly shocking" after cameras outside two fire stations in Birmingham and Wolverhampton captured almost 19,000 potential driving offences in just two weeks during March. The violations included a front-seat passenger holding a toddler on their lap with no seatbelt, and a driver gripping a phone with both hands. West Midlands police and crime commissioner Simon Foster called the findings "deeply concerning" and said authorities are evaluating how AI cameras could be deployed for future enforcement.

Despite the scale of violations recorded, no prosecution action is planned — the trial was designed only to measure the extent of the problem.

At Ladywood alone, the cameras identified 11,045 potential seatbelt offences and 1,163 mobile phone offences in the two-week period.

Parker warned: 'I've met families who have lost loved ones to reckless driving — they never recover from these tragedies, the grief is always there.'