The need to stay in touch

[MotherBear]

Kiwis just can't help texting and driving
10 November 2006

The day after a coroner warned against the dangers of texting while behind the wheel, Wellington motorists were happily tapping away on their phones.

The Dominion Post spotted six drivers sending text messages, and another six talking, during a 30-minute period at a busy Wellington city intersection.

Transport Safety Minister Harry Duynhoven has called for a ban on the use of handheld cellphones while driving, after the Levin coroner heard how Andrew Hicks crashed and died in Foxton, minutes after a series of text message were received, and one sent, on his phone.

Text messaging and cellphone use was a rapidly rising factor in car crashes, police told the inquest.

It was no surprise the newspaper found so many motorists flouting warnings about the dangers of using phones while driving, acting road policing manager John McClelland said. "I can't understand people trying to send a text – nothing is that important that you can't pull over."

Drivers could be charged if they drove carelessly while talking or texting. Any plans to ban cellphone use in vehicles should be carefully examined, Mr McClelland said.

A Land Transport New Zealand spokesman said drivers should not text or talk, even when stopped at traffic lights. "When you are driving your concentration should be focused on the task of driving."

Cellphones or communication devices were involved in seven of the 27 fatal crashes last year in which driver distraction was a factor, Transport Ministry figures show.

- The Dominion Post

[fisheress]

They've just thrown out the idea of banning use of mobiles whilst driving here.......the reason being if they did, they would also have to ban drinking and eating too............can't remember pushing buttons on the last chocolate bar I ate!!!!

Fisheress

[MotherBear]

......can't remember pushing buttons on the last chocolate bar I ate!!!!

Presumably it doesn't distract you either by chatting to you.  

There's a gulf of difference between being preoccupied with a mobile phone and munching on a chocolate bar.  Could be that the choccie bar helps maintain concentration with its sugar boost.  

Mmmmm.  Chocolate. Gone are the days when I could work my way through a bar and not add inches to my waistline.  

[selchie]

I just wish people had more sense about such things. We lost a friend to another driver who was sending a fax while navigating an unfamiliar narrow & winding road. Miraculously, our friend's baby girl survived, but is now motherless.

[Glenda]

This is just so damn stupid. It is obvious a driver whose eyes are off the road for any period of time is going to drive recklessly. They've banned using mobile phones while driving in the UK - that is one good rule they could use here.

>:(

[Dawn]

I just wish people had more sense about such things. We lost a friend to another driver who was sending a fax while navigating an unfamiliar narrow & winding road. Miraculously, our friend's baby girl survived, but is now motherless.

Selchie, that is so sad and also infuriating >:( I don't think some people realise that when they are in charge of a vehicle they're in charge of a lethal weapon.

I really hope that your friends can piece their lives back together. My thoughts go out to them. :-[

[MotherBear]

Time for a law change, says Minister
Sunday December 10, 2006

Transport Safety Minister Harry Duynhoven has backed a ban on cellphones in cars - and is calling on other MPs to support him in changing the law. Dozens of countries - including Australia and the UK - have banned the use of cellphones in cars, but New Zealand has so far failed to follow suit.

In the wake of the latest texting-while-driving tragedy, Duynhoven made his feelings clear. "I would love to ban it. If I were a benign dictator, it would be gone by lunchtime," he said. "But in countries where they have bans, they still have people using cellphones while driving. The issue is changing behaviour."

Duynhoven said a public education campaign was required, hinting that a strategy along those lines might be included in a package of new road safety measures due to be announced on Wednesday. "I hope that sufficient parliamentarians who read the reports of another young person who obviously wasn't concentrating on her driving will say it's about time something was done," he said.

However, he added, such a ban would be "very difficult" to police, and the devil would be in the detail. "If you are in stop-go peak traffic in Auckland and you get a phone call, should you answer it?" Police can already prosecute drivers for not giving sufficient care and attention to driving, he added.

The Ministry of Transport is preparing a report on the dangers of cellphone use while driving, which will be presented to the Government.

"There's no law against using a cellphone at the moment. There's the whole issue of driver distraction of which cellphone use is a part. But there's been no decision on it yet," said ministry spokesman Peter Burke. However, he said, while it may be legal, texting and driving was extremely hazardous. "Anyone who texts while you're driving is pushing the limits. I don't think anyone would condone texting while driving, it's a recipe for disaster."

Police spokesman Rob Lee said research had shown the practice was as dangerous as drinking and driving. "It's certainly something police are becoming increasingly aware of. A lot of drivers are unfortunately their own worst enemy - they're busy talking and texting on the phone and fail to pay attention to what's going on around them. The results can be, and often are, crashes which cause injury and death."

Public opinion also appears to support a ban. Last year a Herald-Digipoll survey found 77 per cent of people want a ban on cellphone use while driving.

- NZ Herald

[selchie]

I really hope that your friends can piece their lives back together. My thoughts go out to them. :-[

It's been several years now, and I do believe that the family is healing well. They have a wonderful network of friends to support them. But still Reina is greatly missed.

Here, one argument against outlawing cell phone use while driving has been that one might need to make a call in an emergency. I'm sure the law would forgive someone for calling 911 while being chased down the road by a maniac. In other cases, I'm not sure why a person can't just pull over to make that call, but then I am often accused of making too much sense.

On occasion, I have had someone call me, and I hear the road noise on their end. I'll ask them if they're driving. If they answer "yes", I ask them to call back when they find a place to pull over. Not only is it unsafe, but I find it difficult to hear what they are saying.

[MotherBear]

Government ready to act on cellphones in cars
Monday December 11, 2006

The Cabinet will today discuss a raft of road safety measures, including a ban on using cellphones in cars. The move comes just days after Ohope teenager Sharleen Lloyd was killed when her car crashed into a parked trailer.

Police suspect that the 16-year-old was sending a text message at the time of the crash. But that allegation was rejected yesterday by her father, Eric, who said that those first on the scene had told him her mobile phone was in her handbag. Miss Lloyd's death on Thursday is being seen as possibly the third this year in which text messaging has been implicated.

Teenager Inia Motu Rauwhero Roberts died in January while driving a tractor at the Whitford Landfill. A cellphone with a half-written text message was found lying on the ground near the 15-year-old's body. In May, Andrew Kenneth Hicks from Foxton was killed when he crashed into a power pole after being distracted by text messages while driving.

Transport Safety Minister Harry Duynhoven - who is set to launch a road safety policy statement on Wednesday with Transport Minister Annette King - has repeatedly called for a law change to ban cellphone use in vehicles.

He said yesterday that using cellphones while driving should be banned but conceded there would be challenges upholding any such laws.

"I think cellphones should be banned simply to give the police another tool in the fight against the road toll," he told TV3. I think the real difficulties are policing them and the fact they're an all-pervasive device."

Mr Duynhoven told the Herald last night that the policy statement's recommendations would focus on education rather than prosecution but did not rule out legislation. Several countries already prohibit the use of hand-held cellphones while driving.

Police Association chairman Greg O'Connor said yesterday that texting while driving was "bloody stupid" and drivers who did could be charged with the careless use of a motor vehicle. Telecom spokesman John Goulter described the practice as "foolish" and said the company's literature urged customers to pull over to answer incoming calls.

Land Transport New Zealand has said research showed that a loss of concentration while on a mobile phone and driving, rather than physically holding a phone, posed the greater risk. Mr Duynhoven told the Herald on Sunday he wants to see all MPs get behind moves that would limit cellphone use while driving.

- NZ Herald

To ban or not to ban? This lot thinks not.

[MotherBear]

As long as the messages aren't sent while the person is driving!  ?

Text message drink-drive campaign a hit
Friday, 15 December 2006

An innovative Land Transport New Zealand ad campaign has seen thousands of young drinkers send sober driving messages to their mates where they need them most – in the pub.

The campaign, which kicked off at Labour Weekend, uses posters and coasters to encourage young drinkers to text message a mate's phone number to a short code, which in turn sends an offbeat pre-recorded sober driving voice message to the mate's phone.

The messages come from one of four unusual characters, each designed to remind the young person of the dire consequences of drink-driving in an entertaining way.Land Transport NZ (LTNZ) advertising manager Paul Graham said the campaign was a new way of grabbing the attention of a hard to reach group and delivering potentially life-saving messages.

"Young men are a high-risk group for drinking and driving, but they also find it hard to discuss the issue with their mates. We know it's especially hard for them to confront friends about drink-driving. Sending a humorous pre-recorded message gives them an effective, anonymous and fun way to get through to their friends if they think they're in danger of drink driving."

Since the campaign kicked off, more than 7000 voice messages have been sent. Both Telecom and Vodafone have supported the campaign, including providing a number of free voice message calls.

Last year 15 to 24-year-old drivers were involved in 142 fatal crashes and more than 4300 injury crashes. The total social cost of these crashes was about $1 billion.

Nearly 40 per cent of all fatal crashes involve a driver aged under 25, and nearly 80 per cent of young drivers involved in fatal crashes are male, according to LTNZ. Alcohol is a contributing factor in more than 30 per cent of fatal crashes involving young drivers, compared with 19 per cent for those aged 25 and over.

- Stuff