Number of drivers fined for illegally using mobile phones drop by a quarter

Where I most notice the use of hand held cell phones in London traffic is where traffic is near stationary or filtering very slowly due to high traffic volumes

The low speed, or queuing, does not make it any less dangerous, or in the eyes of the law, any less of an offence.

A good example are the roads surrounding Hampstead and Highgate in NW London - during the week's school run I will slowly filter on my road bike on the outside of slowly moving traffic; I watch motorists as I pass to make sure I will not be caught out by a sudden pull-out of the queue. This means every driver is very visible as I pass.

I would make a very reasonable guess that 50% of these motorists (its every other car) have a device in their hands whether a cell phone or tablet, it can be holding the device to their ear during a call or most commonly tapping away at the screen with the device held towards their face.

I have also seen people in these queues reading books and last week a women eating a big place of rice (!) with a spoon on a floral patterned plate balanced on her lap, her car was moving forward

I work from home part time, and whenever I do I usually have to drop off some post. That's a short walk of a few hundred metres along a busy road in SW London, always at around 5pm.

You tend to notice individuals when cycling, which is anecdotal rather than a useful statistic. I was curious what the number would be if I observed every single car along this section of road, so sometimes I count the mobile phone users when I do this walk.

It's rarely fewer than 10, I've hit 20+ several times, greater than one in three.

we need a major shift in social attitudes towards using a hand held cell phone whilst driving - similar to what happened with seat belts and drink driving?

until this happens, dwindling Police resources and motorists who realize the chances of actually getting caught, means it will continue as a prolific activity.

I ride 28km through London as part of my daily commute, from NW through Central in the Docklands.

The sheer number of drivers I see every day using hand held cell phones whilst driving, or tapping on smartphones, is breathtaking. Especially when they are driving an HGV, bus or other large vehicle.

Was almost hit by an AA driving instructor using his phone while driving along a single lane road the other day. That pretty much sums it up.

While the number of (all be it anecdotal) occurrences of witnessing fckheads on their mobiles continues to increase at a staggering rate.

Sad but true.

Catching speeders simply means installing cameras. Catching phone users inconveniently (and expensively) needs real police doing real policing. Perhaps that's too much to expect. But if resources are a problem, perhaps that needs to be met by making the fines less than a "small punitive measure" and make them more 'thought-provoking'.

My new car came with a handy rubber holder to convert a cupholder into a place to store my phone and keep it to hand.

Nuff said.

not too impressed with myself shouting at a guy playing with his ear...

Concealed snipers on the sides of roads would be a start. All the f*ckers who dial and drive deserve a bullet between the eyes.

At the risk of getting some aggression for being a bit self righteous because we all do things that we shouldn't...

If I see a HGV driver using a phone and can identify the company from the vehicle graphics, then I call them up and ask to speak to the transport manager. I'm not specific about number plates just time and place as the non self righteous part of me wants the driver to get a bollocking but not enough evidence to lose them their job. I'm also assuming that the company actually gives a stuff, though presumably if their driver loses their licence (unlikely I know given the report above) it must give them a problem, and if there is an accident then mobile use might make their insurance cover tricky and leave the company and company directors liable.

If other people using a phone whilst driving is something that really bothers you then join BRAKE or ROSPA or a local safety group and get involved in 'good citizen' road safety activities to protect your own community. You won't make yourself popular but my personal observation is that around 1 in 50 drivers is using a mobile phone round the town where I live. That's about 2% of drivers at any single moment in time and as far as I am concerned they represent a threat to me as a cyclist and my children as pedestrians.

Accidents (Incidents?) are rarely due to a single cause, there is usually a chain of unfortunate coincidences and circumstances. Remove any of the links and the chain is broken. Using a phone whilst driving is selfish and irresponsible, it should be seen as being as antisocial as drink driving and in my opinion the authorities should be treating it just as seriously. If nothing else surely at £100 a pop it's a great little money earner?

If the police aren't catching any that doesn't mean they're not doing it. It's probably more indicative of the reduction in policing.

On my 7 mile commute the numbers I see driving whilst playing with their phone is shocking.

I welcome the education courses over a fine/points - I think it is far better to educate drivers and it is far more likely to change their behaviour than a small punitive measure.

I do however think that if you injure or kill someone whilst driving and using a phone you should be tried for manslaughter.

As Brake and other august bodies point out if there is no police presence to catch you then you will get away with it, the number of times I have heard people say "speeding isn't a crime, it's getting caught speeding that's a crime" sort of sums up some peoples attitude to road safety.