Key points:
- The SafeDrive trial began in July 2026 and will run for 90 days.
- The system identifies phone use and drivers not wearing seat belts.
- Automatic number-plate recognition checks insurance and roadworthiness inspection validity.
- The device monitors several lanes and both directions at the same time.
- Offences detected during the trial will not result in penalties.
- Under current Italian rules, some offences must be confirmed directly by an officer.
- If the trial is successful, the system may send alerts to nearby patrols.
- Catalonia is also developing similar tools to identify vehicles automatically.
A conventional speed camera measures speed. SafeDrive is designed to go further by assessing driver behaviour, checking vehicle records and flagging offences that are difficult to identify automatically from the roadside. The Italian trial also highlights a growing gap between enforcement technology and legislation: a device may detect a suspected offence without being legally authorised to issue an automatic fine.
SafeDrive scans several lanes at once
The trial was approved by the metropolitan authorities in Florence and is taking place on the Firenze–Pisa–Livorno expressway, one of Tuscany’s busiest routes. The device is installed near Lastra a Signa, where it can monitor traffic travelling both towards Florence and towards Pisa and Livorno.
SafeDrive combines high-resolution cameras with infrared lighting. This setup is intended to produce clear images during the day and at night, including when lighting conditions change. Its algorithms assess several lanes and moving vehicles simultaneously, identifying drivers holding a smartphone or travelling without a fastened seat belt.
Automatic number-plate recognition also allows the system to check whether a vehicle has valid insurance and a current roadworthiness inspection.
Occupants’ faces are blurred automatically
Because the system processes images of vehicle interiors, privacy protection is a central part of the trial. Before any material is stored, the faces of people inside the vehicle are automatically obscured.
The device was developed by the Tuscan company Sodi Scientifica, which previously supplied the same route with a radar system using ToF laser technology. That equipment has been operating between Montelupo and Empoli Est since 2025.
No fines during the 90-day trial
Offences detected by SafeDrive will not result in penalties during the trial. This is not solely because the project is still at the pilot stage. Under current Italian rules, offences such as using a phone while driving or failing to wear a seat belt must be established directly by an officer.
The technology can flag a suspected offence, but it cannot yet trigger an entirely automated fine. If the trial produces positive results, an initial deployment could involve sending an alert to a patrol in the vicinity. Officers could then stop the vehicle and confirm the offence themselves.
Fully automated penalties would require changes to the law.
Trucks will be monitored too
The Firenze–Pisa–Livorno route was chosen deliberately. It carries heavy passenger traffic as well as industrial freight, providing a more demanding testing environment than the urban roads used in earlier trials. The system will also analyse heavy goods vehicles travelling along the route.
For carriers, the key point is that the device is not limited to speed enforcement. It can simultaneously flag phone use, failure to wear a seat belt and problems with vehicle documentation.
Catalonia is also testing AI for phone and seat-belt offences
Catalonia is pursuing a similar approach to road enforcement. In June and July 2026, the region tested a mobile artificial-intelligence device on the A-2 and AP-7. During the pilot, the system identified more than 8,500 possible cases of phone use and around 4,500 possible cases of travelling without a seat belt.
Among verified drivers, an average of 4.3% may have been using a phone. The figure was about 5% on the A-2 and 3.6% on the AP-7.
The algorithm’s overall accuracy exceeded 70%, while its phone-use detection rate reached 84%. The findings were intended to help determine whether the technology should be included in Catalonia’s road-safety plan for 2027–2030.
Road enforcement increasingly starts before a vehicle is stopped
The Italian and Catalan trials point to a broader shift in how traffic rules may be enforced. A check no longer has to begin with a vehicle being pulled over. Systems can first assess images, registration numbers, vehicle weight or tachograph data, then select vehicles for a closer inspection.
For carriers, compliance now involves more than driving time and vehicle weight. Driver behaviour and the validity of documents may also be checked while a vehicle is still on the move.
Technology can bring more vehicles under observation and reduce purely random checks. At the same time, entirely automated penalties remain dependent on national legislation and data-protection requirements.
