KATHMANDU, July 7: Kathmandu Valley Traffic Police have stepped up enforcement against traffic rule violations by expanding the use of its technology-driven "faceless traffic policing" system, with nearly half of all traffic actions now based on CCTV footage.
The Kathmandu Valley Traffic Police Office said the system, which relies on CCTV cameras to monitor traffic, analyze vehicle movement and identify violations, has made enforcement more transparent, efficient and objective.
According to Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Suresh Kafle, around 40 to 50 percent of traffic actions in the Valley are currently initiated using evidence captured by CCTV cameras.
"The goal is to make traffic management more transparent, effective and free from unnecessary disputes through the use of technology," SSP Kafle said.
On average, more than 2,000 motorists are booked for traffic violations on working days. Although the number of actions has increased, Kafle stressed that the objective is not revenue generation but ensuring compliance with traffic laws and improving road safety.
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"Fines are imposed according to the nature of the offence. Our objective is not to collect revenue but to discourage traffic rule violations and prevent repeat offences," he said.
He added that neither the government nor the traffic police view traffic fines as a source of state revenue, emphasizing that enforcement is solely aimed at enhancing road safety.
Kafle described Nepal's road safety situation as alarming, noting that an average of seven to eight people lose their lives in road accidents every day across the country, while around 20 others sustain serious injuries.
Reducing such human losses remains the government's and the traffic police's primary responsibility, he said, adding that authorities are strengthening professional capacity and increasing the use of modern technology to achieve that goal.
"Our priority is to ensure that no one loses their life or suffers injuries unnecessarily while using the roads. Traffic police personnel remain on duty around the clock to make roads safer," he said.
Referring to past criticism that traffic police used to hide and penalize motorists, Kafle said the expanded use of CCTV-based enforcement has made the process more transparent.
"We have video evidence of every violation. This reduces disputes between motorists and traffic police while making enforcement more credible and transparent," he said.
The traffic police said they plan to further expand CCTV surveillance across Kathmandu Valley and strengthen the implementation of the faceless traffic policing system in the coming days.
