Using a phone blatantly!
Discussion
Had an interesting drive to work yesterday... As I joined the main A435 up to A46 toward Evesham, there were some roadwork traffic lights on red, so slowed and stopped. A few sec later they turned to green, I checked my rear view mirror before pulling off to see one of the older type micra's behind me, with the driver on the phone.
I pulled off, but with occasional glances in my rear view mirror, noticed that said idiot was constantly on the phone and when he wasn't he was texting, sometimes with no hands on the wheel whilst yawning so wide, I thought he would dislocate his jaw! He seemed totally oblivious of any traffic, or indeed the fact he was fully exposing his antics to anyone who cared to look.
I decided to turn my dash-cam around at the lights, just in case this saga turned bad for him, or anyone else for that matter.
For 12 miles he never stopped his antics, eventually leaving my route at Evesham. What made it worse was that he was probably a young Carer off to see a Client, as his car was emblazoned with a logo that belongs to a Care services company I happened to recognise.
Once in the office, I checked the dash-cam with my laptop, but found that the files were messed up -
Lucky for him, methinks! Don't know whether I should be reporting this to his company..... no evidence now though!
I pulled off, but with occasional glances in my rear view mirror, noticed that said idiot was constantly on the phone and when he wasn't he was texting, sometimes with no hands on the wheel whilst yawning so wide, I thought he would dislocate his jaw! He seemed totally oblivious of any traffic, or indeed the fact he was fully exposing his antics to anyone who cared to look.
I decided to turn my dash-cam around at the lights, just in case this saga turned bad for him, or anyone else for that matter.
For 12 miles he never stopped his antics, eventually leaving my route at Evesham. What made it worse was that he was probably a young Carer off to see a Client, as his car was emblazoned with a logo that belongs to a Care services company I happened to recognise.
Once in the office, I checked the dash-cam with my laptop, but found that the files were messed up -
Lucky for him, methinks! Don't know whether I should be reporting this to his company..... no evidence now though!
Breadvan72 said:
PS: maybe the phone drivers and the dash cammers could be made to beat each other to death with their w
ky devices in Gladiatoral combats, and we could sell tickets on the internet. World of Win.
the phone users should get better weapons thou, whilst they are bad the self righteous dash cam police wannabe's are far worse ky devices in Gladiatoral combats, and we could sell tickets on the internet. World of Win. There are plenty of studies that show that using a phone while driving significantly impairs situational awareness and driver performance, and I suggest that anyone who says that using a phone while driving does not make them drive even a bit less well is not being frank with him or her self. There have been several cases in which use of a phone was a factor in causing death. This then raises a utilitarian question. Should we just prosecute phone users if danger can be shown, or should we take the view that as most of us have phones and many of us are tempted to use them whenever we can we should adopt a blanket ban? I think that the utilitarian case for the blanket ban is strong enough to justify it.
Of course, there are lots of distractions in cars. Radio dials, sweet wrappers, passengers, pets, etc, but there seems to be something about our love of the mobile phone, and the way in which it absorbs our attention when we are using one that makes it a worse distraction than the others.
Of course, there are lots of distractions in cars. Radio dials, sweet wrappers, passengers, pets, etc, but there seems to be something about our love of the mobile phone, and the way in which it absorbs our attention when we are using one that makes it a worse distraction than the others.
Breadvan72 said:
There are plenty of studies that show that using a phone while driving significantly impairs situational awareness and driver performance...
All the studies I've seen show that it is the conversation that causes the problem, not physically holding the phone. The real danger is those using hands free kits thinking they arent a danger. The sooner they are banned the better. Police two way radios as well whilst you're at it.Oddly, a conversation with someone in the car is less distracting than a conversation on a phone. There's something abut a phone that tends to put us inside a bubble (watch pedestrians on the phone, for example). I find that if I talk hands free on a phone while driving I pay a bit less attention to driving than I should. As for people who send/read text messages or emails while driving, 'kinnell.
I assume that in police cars with two officers on board one drives and one does the radio. If there is only one officer, does the car have a transmit button on the steering wheel? I used to fly recreationally, and in an aircraft with a radio you click on a button on the control column when you want to transmit a message to a ground station. Transmissions are terse and it is usual not to chatter on the radio when you are doing something that requires concentration such as taking off or landing. Most of the time, of course, you are just flying about and no other aircraft or physical obstacle is anywhere near you.
I assume that in police cars with two officers on board one drives and one does the radio. If there is only one officer, does the car have a transmit button on the steering wheel? I used to fly recreationally, and in an aircraft with a radio you click on a button on the control column when you want to transmit a message to a ground station. Transmissions are terse and it is usual not to chatter on the radio when you are doing something that requires concentration such as taking off or landing. Most of the time, of course, you are just flying about and no other aircraft or physical obstacle is anywhere near you.
Edited by anonymous-user on Saturday 23 August 12:27
Breadvan72 said:
Oddly, a conversation with someone in the car is less distracting than a conversation on a phone. There's something abut a phone that teds to put us inside a bubble (watch pedestrians on the phone, for example). I find that if I talk hands free on a phone while driving I pay a bit less attention to driving than I should. As for people who send/read text messages or emails while driving, 'kinnell.
I assume that in police cars with two officers on board one drives and one does the radio. If there is only one officer, does the car have a transmit button on the steering wheel? I used to fly recreationally, and in an aircraft with a radio you click on a button on the control column when you want to transmit a message to a ground station. Transmissions are terse and it is usual not to chatter on the radio when you are doing something that requires concentration such a taking off or landing. Most of the time, of course, you are just flying about and no other aircraft or physical obstacle is anywhere near you.
Almost....I assume that in police cars with two officers on board one drives and one does the radio. If there is only one officer, does the car have a transmit button on the steering wheel? I used to fly recreationally, and in an aircraft with a radio you click on a button on the control column when you want to transmit a message to a ground station. Transmissions are terse and it is usual not to chatter on the radio when you are doing something that requires concentration such a taking off or landing. Most of the time, of course, you are just flying about and no other aircraft or physical obstacle is anywhere near you.
Most police cars, in the day time, are driven by one person so they have radio duties as well. Additionally the unmarked and routine patrol cars - the little neighbourhood hatchbacks without response equipment - often don't have the full gamut of car mounted Airwave radio stuff. I've even seen them with the radios mounted in the glove compartment (?!?) so that the dashboard didn't have to be expensively cut about.
Moving up a level the normal response cars have a radio mounted in the middle with a handset in the passenger's footwell. This is shaped like a telephone receiver and can be used as such, or has a Push to Talk button in the style of a two-way radio. Finally there's a CB style microphone in the middle used for the roof mounted megaphone!
However the car sets aren't usually fully synchronised with the control room, so using one displays a different Operator ID on their screens. So the controller is usually like 'Who on Earth???' when a transmission comes through from a car set.
From a driver point of view there's a push to talk button mounted behind the steering wheel but this relies on an overhead microphone mounted somewhere near the sunvisor. Next to useless in my experience! As a short person I tended to find it was too far away from my mouth to clearly pick up what I was saying. Therefore I'd either have to talk at it, thus not looking straight ahead, or shout. The easier option was to use the personal Airwave set. Most did! Regardless of whether they were driving or not. As far as I know there's a special exemption for use of phones/radios for emergency driving purposes anyway. I used to call people, as the Airwave sets can dial into the telephone network via GSM and offer full duplex conversation, whilst driving too! So it's not as rosy as one may think.
In regards to the other thing: the carer is most likely on his way to be abused and sprayed with faeces whilst earning the minimum wage. He was yawning, most likely as a result of working ridiculous hours off a rota with no consideration for circadian rhythms, and used a phone a bit. Maybe to take calls off some screaming supervisor demanding to know why he wasn't on his knees with the slop bucket right then. But he is giving something back, for little reward, and no doubt wishes he was somewhere else instead. I've done that sort of thing and it's no fun. Perhaps the journey offered the only downtime of the day to communicate with friends? Plus no-one died or whatever.
Why the local weirdo, fully loaded with revolving spy equipment, wants to make his life just that bit worse is baffling. Unjustified too. It could, of course be reported, but that sort of thing happens every day.
I don't really disagree with any of that, there's no doubt that being on the phone isn't going to improve ones driving and will very likely make it worse. I just can't help but feel the almost hysterical reaction to it is a bit ott. Still I suppose a blanket ruling sort of makes sense as it's difficult to prove degrees of danger, but there are stories of people getting 'done' in situations that defy common sense
Back in the 80s, when there were plenty of police on the roads, us van couriers used to get stopped all the time for using our radio mics whilst driving. In sympathy to the post above, using a radio is hardly like nattering away on the phone, as it is usually short terse replies or questions ie 'Oxford St POB' or 'empty Heathrow Terminal 2'.
This is far different to the gormless these days with no spacial awareness yet happy to hold a 30min conversation about bks and nothing, whilst driving down a busy street.
This is far different to the gormless these days with no spacial awareness yet happy to hold a 30min conversation about b
ks and nothing, whilst driving down a busy street.Gassing Station | Speed, Plod & the Law | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff