File photo shows a similar model of the drone to be used in testing by Deutsche Bahn.
German national rail provider is set to begin using drones to patrol its areas during a test period, as critics say the company is going too far in its surveillance measures.
A spokesman for Deutsche Bahn said it is going to conduct drone flights at large rail depots in the coming weeks in an attempt to prevent vandalism.
The almost silent drones, which are worth about 60,000 euros each, are equipped with infrared camera and GPS tracking to record evidence for criminal prosecution.
Critics say Deutsche Bahn is going too, adding that security guards, motion detectors and patrols are currently used by local and state police to protect the idle rail cars.
Last year, the company recorded 14,000 separate incidents of spray-painting, which is considered as the main and most expensive cause of damage for the rail provider.
Lawyer Patrick Gau told a German newspaper that the measure of using drones was equivalent to Å“shooting a cannon at birds.”
This comes as Germanyâ„¢s defense ministry cancelled on May 14 plans to purchase and modify US-made Global Hawk drones for 1 billion euros.
The cancellation came after it was emerged that the countryâ„¢s air traffic authorities were not going to allow drones to take off and land over the countryâ„¢s airspace because of the risks it would pose to civilian aircrafts.
In addition last month, a German regulator issued a USD 190,000 fine to the internet company Google for its Street View option within its web mapping service.
The regulator said Google had collected personal and confidential data from wireless local area networks through the program.
The German government adopted laws in 2012 to regulate the usage of drones and the police are already using them to patrol large sporting events and street protests.
CAH/PR
This article originally appeared on: Press TV