Combating transport accidents: front-facing cameras installed on trams

The system, which came into effect on December 27, is permitted by a decree to the law of April 28, 2025 on the safety of users and agents in public transport networks.

It opens up the possibility for operators who wish to do so, on an experimental basis, for more than 88 lines and approximately 1.700 vehicles in circulation, to equip their rolling stock with on-board front cameras in order to combat incidents related to the presence of vehicles or people on tram tracks.

In 2024, 1.427 collisions with a tram by third parties were recorded, resulting in 31 serious injuries and 10 deaths.

The capture of images by front cameras will allow for better analysis of risks and will contribute to the training of drivers, the ministry indicates, a measure all the more useful as the integration of trams and tram-trains into urban traffic generates additional risks in terms of road safety, which "need to be analyzed in order to avoid them and to train drivers".

Following a favorable opinion from the National Commission for Information Technology and Freedoms (CNIL) and the Council of State, the use of these cameras is "limited to the prevention and analysis of accidents as well as the training" of staff, the ministry specified.

The camera image capture angle is reduced to 60 degrees relative to the traffic axis to avoid filming building interiors.

An assessment will be carried out at the end of the experiment, which will be submitted to Parliament "no later than December 28, 2027".

In France, the tram network is present in 30 urban areas and transported 1,2 billion passengers in 2024.