But Beetle your story and then that article following EXACTLY demonstrates what I am on about.
Yes I agree that
holding a phone is a bad thing and I said that. But how is a phone conversation more likely to be more distracting than any other
...rather than accepting that any phone conversation makes you much more likely to crash,"
However, hands-free users could fall foul of existing legislation for "failing to have proper control of a vehicle" if they became so distracted by the conversation that their driving was impaired. Anyone involved in an accident while using a hands-free phone might be vulnerable to charges of careless or dangerous driving. Safety campaigners continue to lobby the Government to make all types of mobile unlawful while at the wheel.
So how do you determine that it was the phone conversation distracting the driver and not the kids in the back fighting ????
Maybe we should ban young men having attractive girls in the car - or maybe make it illegal for young women to wear skirts shorter than a certain length if they are getting in a car - any research on the number of fatalities involving young men with young women in the car - ooooh must be dangerous.
The Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents says that at least 20 Britons have been killed in road crashes in which one or other driver was on the phone.
So where is the data on other causes - how many people killed while loading a CD, or changing radio stations, or looking for a lighter, or dropping a glowing studmuffin end.
Here is the key point everyone forgets
"There is little point having both hands connected to the steering wheel if the brain is not connected to the hands."
By not having your brain connected to your hands you are "Driving Without Due Care and Attention" and who'd have guessed -
there's a law against that already. So if you cause an accident because you were drivng with you head up your arse on the phone then YOU are responsible because YOU were not driving with due care and attention.
But now we have specific legislation that says its only dangerous if you are holding a phone - hamburger is ok - must be - no law against it - cigarette is ok - must be - no law against it - girl freind giving you one - thats ok too. Hells bells they even define that its dangerous (against the law) if you are parked with your engine running - after all you may drive off without knowing..............
So I say lets get ROSPA to investigate the next big accident cause - BAN SMOKING WHILE YOU ARE DRIVING !!! I wonder how far that one would fly.
I tell you what, lets do it the other way round - lets enact legislation that only lets you drive a car a certain way and we have monitoring systems that report you if you don't. Thou shalt have both hands on the wheel 95% of the time as monitored by sensors - thou shalt maintain speeds as laid down by GPS mapping - thou shalt only carry out those communications verbal or otherwise necessary to drive the car.
As I said ................. god help us.
Sparks
