On January 9, Vitebsk / Olga Bogacheva - BELTA /. A traffic light with video recording of traffic violations by pedestrians is planned to be installed in 2012 in Vitebsk, the head of the traffic police department of the Vitebsk Regional Executive Committee's Internal Affairs Directorate, Sergey Motorenok, told a BELTA correspondent. He noted that Vitebsk will be the first city in Belarus to boast this technical novelty. The intersection to be equipped with the unusual traffic light is being determined. Pedestrians who violate traffic rules within its operating zone will be among the first to learn about the system's functioning. The necessity of the innovation on the city's roads is due to a significant number of accidents caused by pedestrians. Over the past year, 113 traffic accidents occurred in the regional center, resulting in 8 deaths and 117 injuries. Two-thirds of the accidents are related to pedestrian knockdowns. At the same time, fault for the incidents is equally shared between drivers and pedestrians. Pedestrians are the most vulnerable category of road users. "Many citizens still do not realize this and, to their own detriment, consciously violate established rules. Therefore, in 2012, traffic police officers of the Vitebsk region will give priority to preventive work with pedestrians," emphasized the head of the traffic police department. Currently, Vitebsk and the main international and republican routes of the Vitebsk region are equipped with video surveillance systems for traffic violations by drivers. On average, about 200 violations are recorded daily in the regional center and Vitebsk district alone. In terms of districts of the Vitebsk region, the highest number of traffic accidents involving pedestrians last year occurred in Vitebsk, Novopolotsk, Polotsk, and Orsha, as well as in Vitebsk, Polotsk, Dokshitsky, Orshansky, and Tolochinsky districts. An increase in the total number of accidents with this category of road users was recorded in Verkhnedvinsky, Gorodoksky, Dokshitsky, Dubrovensky, Polotsky, Tolochinsky, Ushachsky, Chashniksky, and Shumilinsky districts, Novopolotsk, and Orsha. -0-

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