nom

With the mobile phone being a no-no when driving (should be tightened up in towns as well I think), then I hope there's something done about the smoking thang too. Certainly on motorways...

I've watched with amusement/horror as smoker driver goes down the motorway, taking hand 1 off wheel to take *** packet out, then hand 2 to remove *** (or do wiggly thing with hand 1 to try to get it to come out) while steering with ?. Then the lighter comes into it - hand 1 or 2 may well be free by now, as long as ? is still doing the steering. So, all swap, *** in mouth, hand on lighter again and hopefully the ? swaps place with the wheel to carry on steering. Whole palava takes 10 seconds - 10 seconds of brain being elsewhere & nothing that can steer near the steering wheel. Doesn't appear to help much by using a *** lighter either.

Picking a phone up, pressing 'pick up' & sticking it on your shoulder seems pretty tame by comparison. Your mind might not be 100% on the road, but at least one or more hands is somewhere where it can do something! Or maybe we all need to train up our ?s to steer better (you can make up want you want to be the ? )

I wonder if someone will come out with a hands-free smoking kit?

Z75

Hands free smoking kit?

It's called the pub! Can't go for a drink now without choking on smoke and coming back with stinking clothes. oops wrong thread I think. The smokers will flame me and cry civil liberties.

Smoking is a good point though. I know somebody who rolled his car because the ash from his *** landed on his thighs causing him to frantically try to quell the mini inferno. As he took his eyes of the road he hit a high kerb and the car flipped leaving him on the roof.

Well my original point was that it is the conversation and not the handset that causes distraction so that users should try to curb their talktime in demanding driving situations.

GazP

What a bunch of hypocrites you lot are. Someone has asked an innocent question and you lot are making his girlfriend out to be some monster when at the wheel. 75 - 80 on the motorway, and I bet most of you drive around or above that figure. Using a mobile whilst driving is daft, and that is what will get her into the most trouble. Tailgating is stupid as well. But whats all this about smoking and driving? Are you lot so in love with this government and it's 'anti everything' policy? Try getting out of your ivory towers and glass houses and joining the real world sometime.

To the guy who posted this thread, I hope your girlfriend gets off lightly. Using a mobile while driving is a bit daft, but not as bad as some of the things that go on.

Best of luck to her.

Gaz.

medders

The actual offence when using a mobile phone is "failing to be in proper control"
It is not an offence that is limited to mobile phone use. Eating sandwhiches or drinking whilst driving can also cause this offence.

Medders

Adam M

vate I take your point, but if you look statisically at the probablity of having an accident whilst engaged in a telephone conversation, the fact that you may or may not have 20% less control is almost a mute point.

I am not talking about dealing with accidents once they occur, merely about preventing them from occuring.

bigrex

Next they'll try and ban ICE because it can be distracting, or maybe having too many instruments because they cause you to look away from the road Then we'll be into the realms of "Driving whilst under the influence of a cold" in case you sneeze and have an accident. Surely Handsfree kits are no more distracting than talking to a passenger, and definitely no more distracting than having a baby sat on the passenger seat in one of those rear facing chairs. Correct me if I am wrong, but class 1 police drivers have to give a running commentary on what they are doing whilst taking their test and whilst pursuing other vehicles. Is this not a case of "Do as we say, not as we do"????

Andy Tang

iTrader: (3)

You'll be telling me that they put TV's into car's next!!

Vate

AdamM
Understand where your coming from mate but you misinterpreted the point. Not 20% less control but 20% of total control, hardly a 'mute point'.

The government are not 'anti-everything' but they are actively encouraging the police to generate revenue to support the cost of future traffic policing. This will relieve them of the need to assign capital in the future to fund these 'improvements' in our policing, so that they have those funds to squander on something pointless like a dome for example.
Maybe the police should target motorists but in a genuine attempt to make driving safer for us all. Some hope.