A new type of speed cameras will soon appear. Thermal radars, however, have little to do with the speed radars we all know and fear: they don’t measure speed. As their name suggests, thermal radars detect heat, with the aim of determining the number of passengers in a vehicle. The devices in question are therefore only useful in a very specific case: that of roadside checks called “VR2”, or roads reserved for carpooling.

It is an inspiration from our American counterparts, who introduced this device on their roads a long time ago. These famous lanes are in fact reserved for vehicles carrying 2 or more people. Strictly speaking, there is no need to be in a carpooling situation. In addition, these lanes are also reserved for public transport such as buses, taxis and finally zero-emission vehicles bearing the Crit’Air 0 sticker, according to the approaches-administratives.gouv site.

For now, the device is still in the experimental stage. The new thermal radars will initially be tested almost exclusively on a portion of the A5 and A6 motorways, located between Dardilly and Pierre Bénite, as reported by our colleagues from Capital. If the radar detects only one person on board a vehicle using the lane, their license plate will be photographed and the driver will be ticketed, just as in the case of a conventional radar.

Until then, people breaking this rule only saw their license plate number displayed on motorway signs as a reminder of the rules, without any other consequences. In the case of the verbalization of a motorist using the lane alone, he is liable to a fine of 135 euros.