Sponsor's Message

According to the limited amount of data available, cellphone use by drivers has resulted in, or at least been a major factor in, some 17 road deaths during the past seven years.

Was not banning phone use a good decision or not?

Well, having been a passenger in vehicles driven by people who can't converse without taking their eyes off the road and looking at you, I'd have to say that some people shouldn't be allowed to talk while driving -- full-stop!

Then there's the numerous people you see driving with one hand, while smoking, eating or drinking. Is this not even more dangerous than simply holding a cellphone to your ear?

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If you drop your cellphone it's an inconvenience and you may have to pull over so that you can retrieve it from under the seat -- but any driver who drops a lighted cigarette into their lap will almost certainly suffer from an instant lapse in concentration on the road ahead. What's more, the flames and smoke that erupt as their seersucker shirt and polyester pants ignite is almost certain to affect their vision.

In fact, if you've ever been unfortunate enough to travel in the vehicle of a heavy smoker you've probably noticed that visibility through the windscreen is already severely impaired due to the build up of tar on the glass. At night, or if there's any condensation around things get even more borderline -- yet as far as I'm aware, it's not illegal to smoke and drive.

The real demon when it comes to cellphones and road-safety is probably the evil SMS messaging.

While your average teenager can mash the keys on their mobile so fast that their thumbs become a blur, I suspect there are a lot of drivers out there who are somewhat less adept. They're the ones who actually need to look at the buttons to work out what letter is ascribed to each key.

If these idiots decide to send a txt while driving then you'd better clear the roads fast!

Of course there are simple technology-based solutions to this entire dilemma -- just require all mobile use in vehicles to be via a hands-free kit.

Surely conversing over your mobile with such a setup is no different to talking with a passenger in the seat next to you?

And let's not forget that the police already have plenty of law with which to apprehend those whose use of a cellphone adversely affects their driving.

Careless driving, or even reckless driving charges spring to mind -- and I believe that catching people under these laws is preferable to a blanket-ban on mobile use in cars.

If someone is able to drive their vehicle quite safely while conversing on their mobile, why ticket them for doing so?

In fact, if you look at the number of fatalities on our roads in the seven years during which those 17 have died as a result of mobile usage, I think you'd have to agree that this represents a very tiny percentage.

Given the number of people who do use their mobiles while driving, and the very small toll that has resulted, I think it's clear that most people can drive safely while chatting.

For once the government has got the balance right.

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