Within the framework of the action plan of Police of the Republic of Armenia and French Ministry of the Interior for 2014, on Monday, June 16, Major Christophe Rugeot and Lieutenant Olivier Bremon from Traffic Safety Service of French National Police visited Armenia. The overall aim of the visit was to make themselves familiar with the technical maintenance of video/photo surveillance devices and share best practices in this field.
During the press conference the guests shared their impressions and opinions on the relevant sphere.
French police officers highly assessed the effectiveness of installing video surveillance equipment and speed measuring devices on Armenia's interstate and intercommunity highways and mentioned that the cooperation in this sphere will allow to successfully successfully achieve goals. In particular, the mobile speedometers were at stake, the introduction of which proved to be highly efficient in France.
The reporters mentioned that in 2003 the introduction of video surveillance and speed measurement system in France arose public mistrust of the system’s efficiency. But the the figures speak for themselves, in 1974 8,000 people were killed in a road accidents, while in 2013 there were only 3200 highway fatalities in France.
After the introduction of this system there has been a significant decrease in the number of fatalities and gravity index of car accident injuries in Armenia, too.
Making observations and drawing some conclusions, Qhristophe Rugeot and Olivier Bremon emphasized the importance of sharing experience with their Armenian counterparts. The French guests mentioned that they were delighted to find out that Armenian drivers can watch their traffic offences online. The French colleagues believe that the application of this practice will be welcomed in France.
Armenian traffic police officers, in their turn, expressed their readiness to discuss French counterparts' suggestion to introduce mobile speedometers in Armenia, which will allow to control vehicles’ speed not only in those areas where there are stationary speedometers, but along the entire road, as well. French traffic police officers highly assessed the rapidity of the process of issuing driver's licenses and vehicle plates, and mentioned that they had suggested their Armenian counterparts that they follow the experience of France and attach special distinguishing signs on novice drivers' cars.
Christophe Rugeot and Lieutenant Olivier Bremon answered all the questions posed by Armenian journalists and called on both mass media representatives and citizens to maximally assist the Police in ensuring traffic safety for the sake of saving human lives.