If you have walked past Trnavské mýto or Poštová street in the last few days and noticed a tall metal structure with cameras, it is not a construction site. Bratislava is testing two mobile camera towers that the city police can move around the city to places without fixed video surveillance or where many people gather temporarily.
The towers are currently rented. Whether they will stay in the city permanently will be decided after the test period ends, reports STVR.
Where the towers are and why they are there
The locations were not chosen by chance. Trnavské mýto is one of Bratislava's largest transport hubs, where the city police regularly conduct raids due to resident complaints about public order violations and petty crime. Poštová is a busy shopping street in the pedestrian zone of the city center.
The towers were previously tested at Kamenné námestie and Kopčianska street. According to city police spokeswoman Barbora Krajčovičová, they serve as temporary reinforcement for places not yet covered by cameras or for events with large crowds: demonstrations, sports, and cultural events.
How the towers are better than regular cameras
- Height. They offer a view over crowds, trees, and parked cars. A fixed camera on a pole often cannot see this.
- Autonomy. Thanks to solar panels, the tower works where there is no access to the power grid.
- Mobility. The structure can be moved to a new location in a few hours.
The police also emphasize prevention: the visible presence of the camera itself deters potential offenders. And if something does happen, the recordings help investigate the incident later.
Security analyst Radovan Bránik adds another scenario: operators can notice situations on the cameras that threaten to escalate and send a patrol to the location within minutes, before anyone gets hurt.
This is a supplement, not a replacement for the system
Fixed video surveillance in Bratislava has been operating since 2000 and, at the beginning of 2024, had 827 cameras, including 388 at public transport stops. Details on how the city camera system is set up are available on the city police website.
During the testing, the city is evaluating image quality, the reliability of the equipment in different conditions, and its real benefit for patrols. If the conclusions are positive, the city council will decide on purchasing its own towers, and then such structures may become a common part of Bratislava's streets, especially during mass events.
What this means for you in practice: if you see a tower, you are being filmed. Recordings are stored and can be used by the police. For those simply going to work through Trnavské mýto, perhaps only the feeling will change: this intersection is now truly being watched.
