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driving using mobile phoneLast chance to have your say on mobile phone driving
Anyone interested in seeing tougher penalties for mobile phone use while driving has until tomorrow night (15th March) to respond to a government consultation.
Drivers using mobile phone are four times more likely to crash, and mobile phone use is considered more dangerous than drink driving, slowing drivers’ reactions by 50%.
It has been illegal to drive while using a mobile phone since 2003 and currently a Fixed Penalty Notice (FPN) of £100 and three penalty points apply to the offence. However, the problem remains – in 2014 1.6 per cent of all drivers in England and Scotland were observed using a hand held mobile phone.
In December secretary of state for transport Patrick McLoughlin announced plans to increase the fine to £150 and for motorists to receive four penalty points, or six if they are behind the wheel of an HGV at the time of the offence.
He said: "Using a mobile phone at the wheel is reckless and costs lives - I want to see it become a social taboo like not wearing a seatbelt.
"The message is clear: keep your hands on the wheel, not your phone. If you keep taking calls while at the wheel, you could end up being banned from the road."
However, with cuts in the number of police officers dedicated to traffic duties, road safety charities say that increased penalties need to be accompanied by greater enforcement of the law regarding the use of mobile phones to make voice calls, check email and social media feeds or surf websites while driving.
The consultation is here and closes on 15 March at 11.45pm.
Laura Laker is a freelance journalist with more than a decade’s experience covering cycling, walking and wheeling (and other means of transport). Beginning her career with road.cc, Laura has also written for national and specialist titles of all stripes. One part of the popular Streets Ahead podcast, she sometimes appears as a talking head on TV and radio, and in real life at conferences and festivals. She is also the author of Potholes and Pavements: a Bumpy Ride on Britain’s National Cycle Network.
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10 comments
I smell more doob on my commute than see traffic police.
He said: "Using a mobile phone at the wheel is reckless and costs lives - I want to see it become a social taboo like not wearing a seatbelt.
So when was the last time someone was prosecuted for manslaughter or causing death by dangerous driving?
Latter - a couple sentenced in the last month at least more's the pity (that it happened, not that a conviction resulted).
Just yesterday I was sat on my bike behind a car at a set of lights when the lights turned green and the car... did nothing. After a while I shouted at them and they moved off. I'd bet my jockey wheels they were fannying about on their phone.
Completed and in the boxes for comments I have emphasised the need to be able to police the laws otherwise they are useless. If you do take the survey lay it on thick.
As other people have said, without enforcement increased penalties carry little extra risk of being caught. Camera phone use recognition software - pull the other one!
Okay, filled it in.
Seems like a lot of the questions are red herrings. What we want is better enforcement of the existing laws and make it easier for the general public to submit photographic/video evidence to the police.
Done!
Change the penalties all they like but unless they enforce it there is little point. Speeding has only been reduced because the likelyhood of getting done has signficantly increased over the last 20-30 years.
As most of see on the roads the standards of many people's driving is very poor indeed and there is rarely a traffic cop out there to enforce the rules. Instead all we have is cameras which can only police the speed limits, and to make mattters worse the only people who get down are those who register thier cars correctly.
What we need are traffic cops in cars stopping bad drivers BEFORE they cause seriuous injuries, When they stop people they should be looking to charge rather than warn so the process needs to be simplified with fixed penalties issued rather than time consuming paperwork for court appearances.
So let's treat it in the same way as drink driving.