What is the answer to texting?
What is the answer to texting?
Author
Discussion

keslake

Original Poster:

657 posts

235 months

Saturday 27th July 2019
quotequote all
I know it's been done to death but it is just staggering the amount of people who risk the 6 points.

Travelled up from West Sussex yesterday and at the approach to Dartford i was literally surrounded by idiots looking down at their phones and the usual 100yd gap that appears in front of them.

One woman had the phone and steering wheel in her right hand, whilst texting with her left, causing her to straddle both lanes!

Is it just arrogance or stupidity?


NGee

2,952 posts

193 months

Saturday 27th July 2019
quotequote all
As long as there is video evidence and it has been witnessed by a police officer than the phone should be confiscated on the spot and returned after, say, a month.

Most people seem to nbe glued to thier phones nowadays and that would be a far greater punishment than a few points or a few £s fine.

Mike335i

6,046 posts

131 months

Saturday 27th July 2019
quotequote all
NGee said:
As long as there is video evidence and it has been witnessed by a police officer than the phone should be confiscated on the spot and returned after, say, a month.

Most people seem to nbe glued to thier phones nowadays and that would be a far greater punishment than a few points or a few £s fine.
They would just use a 2nd phone. The solution would then need to be to ban them from using any phone at all for a period of time, which would require some kind of licence that could be revoked somehow.

Only solution is social stigma or a hugely disproportionate penalty. So a social media campaign that shames people for doing it or 12 months in prison

anonymous-user

83 months

Saturday 27th July 2019
quotequote all
keslake said:
I know it's been done to death but it is just staggering the amount of people who risk the 6 points.

Travelled up from West Sussex yesterday and at the approach to Dartford i was literally surrounded by idiots looking down at their phones and the usual 100yd gap that appears in front of them.

One woman had the phone and steering wheel in her right hand, whilst texting with her left, causing her to straddle both lanes!

Is it just arrogance or stupidity?
It is a worrying plague. On the motorway every time I see a lorry wandering over the rumble strip - texting. White van in L2 with nothing to overtake, gently meandering all over the place?? texting. Lady (more often than not) sat at green lights whilst everying has moved off? texting.

The biggest concern is the trucks. If I have to join the back of motorway congestion I now always check to see if there is a lorry behind before I choose which lane to stop in.

Take away the speeding element, and it's now pretty much like a large proportion of drivers are pissed.

JB95

25 posts

108 months

Saturday 27th July 2019
quotequote all
The 6 points did it for me, i wasn't caught texting, i was instead changing my music in stop start traffic, got a knock on the window from a friendly police officer, 6 points £200 bang to rights.

This was almost 2 years ago, i haven't even contemplated picking up my phone in the car ever since.

Of course this doesn't apply to everyone, i saw something on twitter this week about a van driver on a dual carriageway, caught on his phone in the morning and then again in the afternoon by the same officers!

Teddy Lop

8,301 posts

96 months

Saturday 27th July 2019
quotequote all
JB95 said:
The 6 points did it for me, i wasn't caught texting, i was instead changing my music in stop start traffic, got a knock on the window from a friendly police officer, 6 points £200 bang to rights.

This was almost 2 years ago, i haven't even contemplated picking up my phone in the car ever since.

Of course this doesn't apply to everyone, i saw something on twitter this week about a van driver on a dual carriageway, caught on his phone in the morning and then again in the afternoon by the same officers!
bang to rights technically maybe, but the difference between doing something brief while stationary and texting while moving are so far apart as to be ridiculous - I guess its probably been done to death here and elsewhere though, cheap'n'easy nick etc etc.

What gets me is the number of times I'm driving to a job and 10 or 20 mins before the appointment I get a text from the client checking I'm on the way when logically, they must know I'm driving to them...

anonymous-user

83 months

Saturday 27th July 2019
quotequote all
Teddy Lop said:
What gets me is the number of times I'm driving to a job and 10 or 20 mins before the appointment I get a text from the client checking I'm on the way when logically, they must know I'm driving to them...
My wife does that. She knows I'm driving, so she texts me. The car has hands free, so call me !!

Summit_Detailing

2,447 posts

222 months

Saturday 27th July 2019
quotequote all
If only manufacturers built some sort of signal blocker into cars, thus making the phone inoperativeidea

cheers,

Chris

Glasgowrob

3,346 posts

150 months

Saturday 27th July 2019
quotequote all
Thing is its. It just texting

Bloody Facebooking while driving seems a thing you see all the time as well




lyonspride

2,978 posts

184 months

Saturday 27th July 2019
quotequote all
I think the general public are of the opinion that texting is ok, but making phone calls is not, all to do with having the phone against your head or not.

Glasgowrob

3,346 posts

150 months

Saturday 27th July 2019
quotequote all
Still amazes me that someone who can get themselves into a position where they can have really nice car doesn't have the mental capacity to connect their phone up to the cRs bluetooth

Zirconia

36,010 posts

313 months

Saturday 27th July 2019
quotequote all
Too many people see it as a personal right to use their phone for whatever means. It needs the same demonising as drink driving.

Pica-Pica

16,592 posts

113 months

Saturday 27th July 2019
quotequote all
Grahamdub said:
Teddy Lop said:
What gets me is the number of times I'm driving to a job and 10 or 20 mins before the appointment I get a text from the client checking I'm on the way when logically, they must know I'm driving to them...
My wife does that. She knows I'm driving, so she texts me. The car has hands free, so call me !!
I tell my wife, if it’s urgent text twice in immediate succession. Then I will pull off the road and read the text. My second phone is always out of reach, but not sound, and is the ‘direct line’ to her (My other phone is switched off when driving).

megaphone

11,663 posts

280 months

Saturday 27th July 2019
quotequote all
I use Siri for dialling numbers and sending messages, it's so easy.

lyonspride

2,978 posts

184 months

Saturday 27th July 2019
quotequote all
Glasgowrob said:
Still amazes me that someone who can get themselves into a position where they can have really nice car doesn't have the mental capacity to connect their phone up to the cRs bluetooth
That's because any idiot can get paid £25k+ to work in an office. Usually 20-30yr old with a pretty face and an aboeba for a brain, but as long as they stomp about at "important speed", whilst holding a few sheets of paper, the idiots in management think they're doing a great job, the result of decades of idiots promoting idiots, promoting idiots. Living with saps of parents, earning that money, you could easily be driving a £50'000 motor.

martinbiz

3,699 posts

174 months

Saturday 27th July 2019
quotequote all
Why on earth do you think video evidence is needed to prove the offence, an officers statement is all that is needed, the same as in many offences, what video evidence can do is help secure a conviction. What needs changing is the powers given to allow seizure as in cases of no motor insurance which were implemented a few years ago. I do agree though, for a lot of people the threat of losing their phone on the spot would be far more of a deterrent

martinbiz

3,699 posts

174 months

Saturday 27th July 2019
quotequote all
[quote=Glasgowrob]Still amazes me that someone who can get themselves into a position where they can have really nice car doesn't have the mental capacity to connect their phone up to the cRs bluetooth[/quote

The problem though is texting IMO far more dangerous than making a call

bad company

21,919 posts

295 months

Saturday 27th July 2019
quotequote all
Summit_Detailing said:
If only manufacturers built some sort of signal blocker into cars, thus making the phone inoperativeidea

cheers,

Chris
That would also prevent other passengers from texting so no, not a good idea imo.

Fort Jefferson

8,237 posts

251 months

Saturday 27th July 2019
quotequote all
I lock my phone in the glove box, so I can't answer it even if I'm tempted.

I'm not important enough to need to speak to someone on the move.

shovelheadrob

1,564 posts

200 months

Saturday 27th July 2019
quotequote all
Smashing the phone to pieces preferably while they're still holding it in their hand with a 5kg hammer, second offence, repeat.