Overview
If you drive in Victoria, there's a decent chance an AI camera has already clocked you. What you might not know is that, thanks to new legislation passed in early 2026, those cameras now have a robust legal foundation to operate under.
That's thanks to the Road Safety Road Rules Amendment (Road Safety Cameras) Rules 2026 (SR 11/2026), which came into effect in February and expanded the formal legal framework governing Victoria's distracted driver and seatbelt detection camera program. Victorian road cameras, using AI to review photos for potential offenders, captured 15,700 offences between July and September 2025: including 5,723 drivers and 4,817 passengers not wearing seatbelts, and 5,160 drivers caught using a portable device at the wheel.
Each trailer-mounted unit carries two cameras and an infrared flash. One camera captures a forward-facing image to detect 'phone to ear' offences and seatbelt issues. The other snaps images at a steep downward angle to catch drivers with a phone resting on their body or touching it while driving. The AI software automatically reviews every image, and if no potential offence is detected, the image is discarded. If there is a visible offence, the photo is reviewed by a human officer who determines if a fine is due for the offending driver.
The cameras operate 24/7, rain, hail or shine. An updated list of camera locations is published on the government's Cameras Save Lives website each month. Should drivers get caught, they'll take a serious financial and license hit. As of the most recent government update in December 2025, using a portable device (e.g. mobile phone) while driving will land you a $611 fine and four demerit points, while not wearing a seatbelt correctly corresponds to a $407 fine and three demerit points. Demerit points accumulate and remain valid for three years on a full license.
Before the camera legislation, Victoria's Department of Transport and Planning released a significant update to the state's Speed Zoning Policy in August 2025. Under the updated policy, councils can now apply permanent 30 kilometres per hour zones near schools, shopping strips and activity centres — instead of just running the limit for a trial period.
Getty Images
Previously, inner-city councils such as the City of Yarra had been operating those zones in parts of Fitzroy and Collingwood since 2018, but were required to maintain them as 'trial' speed limits because the previous policy framework didn't recognise 30 kilometres an hour as a standard option. Now, areas like Brunswick Street, Smith Street, or Swan Street in Melbourne's inner suburbs may see their speed permanently capped. The Allan Government is dedicating significant grants to the rollout, with Yahoo! News reporting that plans are underway to implement speed reductions in Stonnington, Merri-Bek and Bass Coast councils.
Those grants join the $156.1 million investment in the camera program, now funded through to 2030 as part of the Victorian Road Safety Strategy 2021–2030. Modelling from Monash University's Accident Research Centre has estimated that widespread automated phone enforcement could prevent 95 casualty crashes per year in Victoria and save taxpayers $21 million annually.
The numbers tell their own story: distracted driving is estimated to contribute to 11 per cent of road fatalities in Victoria, and drivers are up to ten times more at risk of a serious crash when texting, browsing, or emailing at the wheel. With the updated legal framework in place and camera locations continuing to expand across the state, you'd best keep your phone in your pocket.