Make a Mobile Cost You ?

Hammyman

If using a mobile phone whilst driving is so dangerous, why do police officers in a high speed pursuit in a single manned vehicle use a radio, usually a personal one attached to their shoulder, which requires the use of 1 hand to give a running commentary which requires a lot of concentration?

Why are the police allowed to do that yet for the rest of us it is worse than drink driving?

poppasmurf_bewdley

scheming_gypsy wrote: »

Fact or opinion?

My opinion, which I believe to be a fact.

rodenal

Hammyman wrote: »

If using a mobile phone whilst driving is so dangerous, why do police officers in a high speed pursuit in a single manned vehicle use a radio, usually a personal one attached to their shoulder, which requires the use of 1 hand to give a running commentary which requires a lot of concentration?

Why are the police allowed to do that yet for the rest of us it is worse than drink driving?

It actually doesn't require the use of 1 hand - there is a button that essentially turns on a "constantly listening" mode.

Lum

iolanthe07 wrote: »

I just don't understand why people do this. A hands-free set can be bought for less than a tenner.

The distraction of a mobile phone conversation is not caused by having one hand on a phone, it is caused by the actual conversation.*

Now a £9.99 handsfree kit wobbling about on the end of your ciggy lighter socket is going to sound so bad that the conversation will be difficult to hear, causing even more distraction that just holding the damn phone to your ear.


* This can be mitigated by handling the conversation correctly. Police and truck drivers (on CBs) keep things short and concise and their controllers / fellow drivers don't get arsey if the driver doesn't immediately respond because they are doing something else. In contrast driver are more likely to just gab for long periods about unnecessary rubbish such as last night's episode of Corrie, and this is where it becomes a distraction.

Just holding a phone for a short period isn't much different to holding a fag, taking a gulp from a bottle of water or changing gear, providing you are prepared to drop the phone at the first hint of trouble, and keep your conversations short, sweet and free of pointless gabbing.

Trebor16

Hammyman wrote: »

If using a mobile phone whilst driving is so dangerous, why do police officers in a high speed pursuit in a single manned vehicle use a radio, usually a personal one attached to their shoulder, which requires the use of 1 hand to give a running commentary which requires a lot of concentration?

Why are the police allowed to do that yet for the rest of us it is worse than drink driving?

I don't know about other forces but the Met Police fitted their vehicles with switches on the steering column that allowed their drivers to transmit on the radio without taking their hands off the steering wheel over 15 years ago.

Hammyman

Trebor16 wrote: »

I don't know about other forces but the Met Police fitted their vehicles with switches on the steering column that allowed their drivers to transmit on the radio without taking their hands off the steering wheel over 15 years ago.

Whenever you watch Road Wars et al and its a single crew vehicle, the driver always seems to be pushing the PTT switch whilst turning his head to the left to talk into the radio clipped to his upper chest.

bigjl.

jamespir wrote: »

12 months is stupidly harsh just give them more of a fine or the police take the phone and smash it up like they do to unisnsured cars

For a start the police don't smash up all uninsured cars. The owners have the chance to get them back.

Should the police have smashed your telly too?

bigjl.

rodenal wrote: »

It actually doesn't require the use of 1 hand - there is a button that essentially turns on a "constantly listening" mode.

Still need to press something to talk though!;)

lindopski_2

I put my Iphone on airplane mode when entering the car - this way nothing is getting through.
I attach it to a radio sender and play music via my radio from it on the way home - its great... until
the phone keylock engages whilst on shuffle and all of a sudden chapter 13 of some audio book or other comes on - argh!
Fail!

the only fix is to pick it up unlock the phone using a pin, then get into your itunes, then select a new tarck or shuffle.
This chaos is only stopped by just listening to the radio instead

Lum

Just get a windscreen mount and leave it unlocked, much easier and safer to change tracks.

pdair.com do some nice ones for not much money.