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Periscope screengrabLive video broadcasting the latest in driver distraction - and it could be happening on a road near you (+ video)
A free app from Twitter that allows users to livestream video is being used by drivers to interact with followers while at the wheel, including in the UK, as the footage below shows.
The practice has led a US lawyer to warn that footage could be used in court against a motorist as evidence in the event of a collision caused by the driver being distracted.
The Periscope app, which is available for both iOS and Android devices, enables people to broadcast a live video stream to followers on the network, who can interact with them by posting messages which appear on the user’s device in real time, making it fully interactive.
UK Periscope users who use the app while at the wheel include a driver from delivery firm TNT, who broadcasts his thoughts on a range of issues to his followers.
On Tuesday, during an 18-minute broadcast on the social network, he was asked by one person watching whether he was using it while driving.
He assures his audience that he is able to concentrate on the road while using the app, and also gives his views on cycle safety, although as the following excerpts from the video we captured before it expired on Periscope show, he does not appear fully focused on the road.
We alerted TNT to the usage of the app by an employee while driving one of its vans, and a spokesman for the company told road.cc: “TNT takes the issue of road safety very seriously and have strict policies in place regarding driver behaviour and the use of mobile devices.
“Thank you for bringing this incident to our attention and we will be investigating further."
Periscope is used by media organisations including the BBC, and Sky journalist Kay Burley used it to broadcast behind-the-scenes footage from the party leaders’ debates before last month’s general election.
Less serious uses, according to this article from the Guardian, include people sharing livestreams of the content of their fridges or their pets, with cats and pugs proving most popular.
But it’s users who stream video of themselves driving that is attracting concern, with a blog post from California law firm Appel & Co earlier this month highlighting the dangers.
“Our initial research reveals that too many people are using this app while driving,” says the post’s author, Thomas G Appel.
“Just a simple search on twitter for “driving periscope” demonstrates the huge number of users who are using this new app while behind the wheel.
“Many users who use the app while driving are without any passengers and often respond to written comments, indicating that the driver may just be looking for company or someone to talk to while driving. While this might seem like a cool idea at first, it is actually a very unsafe practice.
“The truth is that drivers who use the Periscope app are constantly distracted. They fiddle with their cell phone to initiate the live stream, adjust the stream, chat with viewers and pinpoint the perfect filming position.”
Appel notes that many of the app’s features “encourage the videographer to interact with his audience,” and says “while Periscope has the potential to revolutionise the manner in which people communicate through social media and video journalism, it should never be used by someone who is behind the wheel.”
He adds: “It won’t be long before a Periscope live feed will provide us with live footage of an automobile accident as it occurs in real time. It remains to be seen whether the video captured from these accidents could be used in personal injury lawsuit against a careless driver.
“Would the Periscope users who viewed the driver’s Periscope feed serve as witnesses in the trial? Would this type of behavior call for punitive damages in a California lawsuit? How can Periscope engineers and designers discourage this type of behaviour?”
Since use of smartphones became widespread, road safety campaigners have highlighted the danger of motorists texting while at the wheel or surfing social media sites, with research indicating that it is more dangerous than driving while under the influence of drink or drugs.
Even those devices that are legally allowed to be used – hands-free mobile phones – need to be used in such a way that the driver is not distracted, otherwise they may face a charge of careless driving.
Simon joined road.cc as news editor in 2009 and is now the site’s community editor, acting as a link between the team producing the content and our readers. A law and languages graduate, published translator and former retail analyst, he has reported on issues as diverse as cycling-related court cases, anti-doping investigations, the latest developments in the bike industry and the sport’s biggest races. Now back in London full-time after 15 years living in Oxford and Cambridge, he loves cycling along the Thames but misses having his former riding buddy, Elodie the miniature schnauzer, in the basket in front of him.
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109 comments
When you are in a hole, stop digging.
Incidentally, don't be a dick is sound advice for many different situations.
I am giving people sensible advice.
I am doing it in a way that will stick in peoples memory.
It is advice that will help to keep them safe.
Some people seem to prefer to pick arguments with me.
Don't be a dick; don't filter down the left hand side of big lorries.
Both still playing the man rather than the ball?
It's like running with scissors; I don't blame the people who make either the scissors or the running shoes.
Don't be a dick; don't filter down the left side of big lorries.
(A lot of large vehicles even have stickers on telling you that it is a really bad idea.)
Cyclists who filter up the inside of lorries aren't dicks. Simply naive to believe that the facilities painted on the road for cyclists to use are fit for purpose. You know, a bit like trusting the exit sign in a cinema will take you to the exit?
No, I'm giving you sensible, real world, tried and tested advice that if you are a new cyclist or an experienced one will keep you safer.
I'm being called names because people are a bit grumpy, but the advice is sound; unless anyone will step up and suggest that filtering down the left side of big lorries is a good thing to do.
Don't be a dick....you know the rest.
Edit:
Which involved people filtering down the left side of big lorries....
erm...
erm...
No-one's calling you names.
Edit:
I hear exactly what you're saying, but it's the wrong solution that you're offering.
If people are being injured and killed because of poor driving, it's the poor driving that has to be addressed and not the victims to be called dicks.
My favourite sticker is the "If I can't see you in my mirrors, etc....", my response is that the mirrors have to be used in the first instance by the driver and even when used wagon drivers will often pull out in front when i'm driving. But hey, if enough of them do it perhaps the Highway code will change to accommodate this dangerous driving practice.
Please yourselves, but my advice will keep you safer until things improve.
Y'all know what not to be, right?
Whatever...
You remind me of someone I used to know, crikey.
But I don't ride down the left side of big lorries, which is the whole point...
No, I suggest that people make an effort not to be dicks, which is a different thing altogether.
It has been instructive to see that people would rather argue about that than apply themselves to the actual issue which is that riding down the left side of big lorries puts them into danger which is easily avoided by not doing so.
I'm fully aware of the arguments which suggest that we should be safe if everyone was good at driving and that we shouldn't be blamed in the cases where it goes wrong, but it is a simple way of staying safer.
The next time someone is tempted, they may well think of me and not do it, in which case, job done.
...and yes, I know I'm an arrogant arse but this is an important thing to get across.
Oooh you naughty road painters, you should know better.
Old enough to keep you entertained, obviously.
Lovely.
Um, I am married, but I'm a Sagittarius if that helps?
I've got a good sense of humour and all my own teeth.
I'm having a fun time, and you keep coming back...
You do know that was a *film*, right?
I'm sure there are still a few people that do this, and it is a little bit silly.
I think cyclists should also ride in the gutter, after all primary position is just asking to be hit.
less of a clue, more of a total missing of the point.
This is why it's worth reinforcing, this is why it's worth continuing to argue, this is why I've wasted an evening being disparaged;
http://www.cyclingweekly.co.uk/news/latest-news/why-are-lorries-responsi...
http://www.ecf.com/news/cycling-fatalities-much-higher-risk-of-getting-k...
https://www.britishcycling.org.uk/article/20130619-campaigning-road-safe...
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/motoring/road-safety/8989290/Lorries-involved...
It's really simple; don't be a dick, don't filter down the left hand side of big lorries.
Bed now, bike tomorrow
You people, especially the writer, should be ashamed. You don't know him. You don't know how respectful he actually is to the rules of the road. You don't know that he is pulled over regularly for being overly cautious, and yet has an impeccable driving record. You don't know how many times he has pulled over and risked his own safety to save the lives of others who have been involved in road accidents. You don't know the deep pasion he holds glut human life. You took one act and hung him for it. This writer chopped up this video, shot on the drivers way home from work (not during), to prove his point. The video was 18 minutes long but he showed only the part that would turn heads. And then, the next day he searched the driver out again to see if he could get more dirt. But did he? No. He got a defeated man sitting at home trying to understand why someone would do this to him...and not only did Simon watch it live but he also watched it again. Why? What did you hope to accomplish with that?
Do you know the driver nearly died fighting for your rights in iraq? Nope, you don't care. Do you know he has 3 girls to take care of? Do you realize he is getting married in two months? But now because of this, he may not be able to afford to get to the US in time, where his bride is waiting.
I gaurentee not a single one of you pricks can say you are completely innocent when it comes to following the rules (any rules) 100% of the time. Hypocrites. I also wager that none of you has as big of a heart as the diver does, and as much respect for human rights. As cyclists, He defends you. He even did do in this broadcast. I know because I've expressed my irritation with you because more often then not, when I'm driving and out comes a cyclist i risk my own safety to ensure the safety of the cyclist who thinks he or she is above the rules of the road is not in jepordy. Because here in Murrica, pedestrians have the right of way and cyclist often take advantage of that. But do you know what's not right? This. This is not journalism. I know because i am a journalist - newspaper reporter to be precise - and this kind of reporting is unethical. You twisted the facts to best fit your agenda and may have cost someone his job. But i promise you, his actions would not have cost anyone their life because this man is cautious and quite frankly, there is no one i know who drives safer. Can you say the same for yourself?
I agree that distraction on the road is an issue. If it werent, there wouldnt be huge statistics on fatal accidents because of distraction. I am arguing that the diver was not doing anything illigal and did not warent such a personal attack. You want to bring light yo an issue? Do it with statistical reporting. Do it with facts that are not bogged down with emotion.
https://www.gov.uk/drivers-hours/driving-under-both-eu-and-gb-domestic-r...
The govt recognises that one should not drive more than 10 hours in any given day. Anything more is not something to boast about.
#Dangerous #Irresponsible
He seems like a nice, intelligent chap. There's no need to sack him, just a quiet word and he'll learn from the experience and be a better driver because of it.
Ah, that's a shame, the videos been taken down.
So if I filter up the left side of a lorry then I am...
Go on, don't be shy. You're on the Internet, you can talk as big as you like, I can't touch you.
Yes. Follow it.
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