February 16, 2018 2.02 pm This story is over 73 months old

Now in HD: Lincoln council upgrades the city’s CCTV system

Goodbye blurry pics, hello Ultra HD.

The city council upgraded Lincoln’s CCTV cameras to a new wireless high definition 4K UHD system after a £400,000 investment.

There are just under 300 cameras throughout the city, which went live in December 2017.

The UHD (Ultra HD 4K) system delivers a significant improvement to image quality, making it easier to identify people.

The wireless transmission system had a one-off price, so there are lower operating costs and going forward this should save the council some £70,000 per year.

The new system will also be able to deliver Wi-Fi connectivity to shoppers in the city centre.

The new system connects some 300 CCTV cameras across Lincoln, monitored from City Hall on Beaumont Fee. Photo: Steve Smailes/The Lincolnite

Some of the old cameras were first installed over 20 years ago and this new digital approach is already proving to be of great benefit to the police and other agencies.

Martin Byrne, CCTV Manager at City of Lincoln Council, said: “The old system was over 20 years old and expensive to maintain and old technology, so the decision was made not just to tinker, but to go full tilt and replace all the cameras and data transmission technology.

“There’s really no comparison from how we operated previously to how we can now.  It revolutionises how we operate and the potential going forward.

“There are two layers of video management system and the second tier options include GPS tracking and lone worker alarms, so there is massive scope.

“We are hoping it will reduce the number of fights and the level of violence. The police love the system and we’ve had very positive feedback from them.

“We’ve gone from 5% to 60% successful reviews of police incidents with the new system.”

CCTV Manager Martin Byrne says the new system already delivered results for Lincolnshire Police investigations. Photo: Steve Smailes/The Lincolnite