Thursday, April 30, 2009

Hold the phone

When is a phone not a phone ... in terms of driving and "talking" on the mobile phone. Each year in Australia, more than 40,000 people are fined for talking on their mobile phone while driving. But what constitutes "talking" - is it having your mobile phone in your hand, in a stationery vehicle, while you transfer it to the handsfree set-up? Or is it using the organiser features of the phone while stationery? Does there have to be talking involved? And why are there only 40,000 people a year pulled up for this - on any day in the Sydney CBD I can clock up to 10 in 10 minutes - anyone doing the math can work out there should be heaps more because the message about not using your mobile while driving certainly hasn't gotten across to lots of folk. (Revenue each year from mobile phone-related fines - $9 million - and rising?)
But maybe using a mobile phone while driving is safer than what a Norwegian man and his girlfriend were doing - as well as 133km an hour in a 100km zone on Easter Sunday. The report I read said the man faces a "heavy fine and driving ban" after police caught him "having sex" while driving. No further details were provided.

No comments: