David Cameron's Diary

Would you feel safe to drive after a couple of glasses of wine....the answer is probably no!

Yet Britain has still to wake up and realise that research has shown that using a mobile phone, no matter whether it is hands-free or hand-held makes you a greater risk on the road than many drunk drivers. The table at the top is a flavour of an article at BBC News that is over 4 years old that talks to the risks in greater detail.

So why is it that on the 3rd anniversary of a UK law banning hand-held calling when driving, that so many people still choose to ignore it and consider it reasonable to drive at speed with a phone clamped to their ear? It is not completely safe to operate hands-free and I would support any legislation to outlaw it, but it gives around 20ft shorter reaction distance at 70mph to operate at least with hands-free kit.

Many countries have introduced absolute bans with heavy fines....see http://www.cellular-news.com/car_bans/ for a very recent list.

It is ridiculous that hands-free kits are marketed as a SAFE alternative. They are NOT SAFE as the above countries obviously agree. It is high time that the Police showed zero tolerance to mobile phone callers and they are treated to the same public humilation and potential penalties as drunk drivers are receiving, and slap them with a driving ban.

If you are guilty of making or receiving calls when driving I ask you to reflect.....would you feel that it wasn't the drivers fault if he didn't stop in time and you lost your son, daughter, partner, parent or other loved one and found out that he was engaged in a phone call at the time of the accident? As the table shows, it will need close to 50% greater stopping distance if someone is making a call when driving.

In those circumstances, I suspect that you would not find that charity in your heart, so please start by changing your own habits and switch off the phone when you are driving, lest you be the one seeking compassion from the bereaved.

With what I have told you here, you will never be able to argue it wasn't your fault and if you have any sense of decency you will be haunted forever by the "what if I hadn't made\taken that call".

Accidents are not usually chance events (maybe exceptions arising from the forces of nature); they are typically caused by someone's carelessness or not taking adequate preventative steps. All it takes for an accident is for one person not to adhere to the best safety practice even when not compelled by law, often with disastrous consequences to someone else.

Don't let yourself be that person saying "What if......." or "If only...".

Labels: driving, hand-held, hands-free, legislation, mobile ban

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