It’s my pet hate, and I have found myself challenging drivers I see in yapping on their phone in traffic lately, which is probably a surefire way to get myself punched soon, but it just pisses me off.

A couple of weeks ago I watched some fool in a 5 series cruise a mile and a half jabbering, stopped by him at some lights and pointed out what He’d just done, he just bluffed it out, claimed He’d only just picked it up.

And just now I got bawled at by some horrible chavette in a knackered Suzuki for daring to tell her to get off her phone…

Obviously my righteous MAMIL act isn’t going to scare em into compliance, and I refuse to go full “CycleGaz” but how exactly is this law supposed to be enforced? We’ve had it almost 15 years now and so far as I can see it’s pretty much universally ignored.

[/Aimless Rant]

Suggestions and/or flaming as you see fit STW…

We’ve had the drink-drive laws for 50(?) years and people still get caught. Using a mobile phone whilst driving needs to become seen in the same manner as drink-driving, it won’t eradicate it but it will significantly reduce it.

A motorcycle rider, who shall remain nameless once took the phone off a driver who nearly knocked him off and threw the phone over the edge of the Hammersmith flyover. In the car it’s quite amusing to lean on the horn if next to the driver, not that I would ever do any of the above.

Cant see what anybody can do about it.It is getting worse.I drive for a living have seen all sorts on them .Bus drivers/fire engine driver/nurses in uniform the list goes on and on.

We’ve had [this law] for almost 15 years now and so far as I can see it’s pretty much universally ignored.

I did a driving course in a room full of people who’d been caught using their phones, so the cops do look out for them (i wasn’t there for that btw, I got bluetoof)

The worst are the drivers who think they’re using the phone hands-free because they have it on speaker.

While holding it in one hand 😕

no excuses at all most phones have bluetooth and hands free stuff is not expensive

Bint behind me queuing up Otley Chevin was jabbering on her phone whilst she applied her slap in the mirror and struggling to drive at the same time

In back of a cab on m25 now. Guy has been alongside in a van here and there for a few miles, phone on steering wheel, texting or watching porn, who knows.. Maybe gps. There’s prob a few solutions but there’s no political will to do much.

Yep. Definitely seems to be on the increase. Young women seem particularly bad for it. Recently saw a bus driver texting while sitting at the lights and was overtaken by a Tesco delivery driver texting as he drove along.

Young women seem particularly bad for it.

The girl I saw FaceTiming on a busy M80 agrees

Liveried vehicles I note the name and reg and email the office. I warn our drivers that I don’t expect them to answer if they are driving but to call in at the next lay-by. There is no excuse for holding a phone and driving.

A blog I read today from West Midlands Police says we should simply point at them, no one likes being pointed at.
Whether it would work is another matter.
I see it at every junction, every day. Its endemic now & people simply think its as acceptable as driving through that light that’s ‘just’ turned red..

Here is the blog :-

Mobile Phones,Driving and FOMO (Fear of Missing Out)

Bint behind me queuing up Otley Chevin

bus driver texting while sitting at the lights

Going to get flamed for this I know but I think there are grades of badness. Using your phone whilst flying along at 70 on the motorway or negotiating a roundabout – really bad. Using it whilst stationary in a jam on the motorway or even whilst crawling along – not so much.

Not sure where we are with music in cars now either. Previously it was all about ferreting around in the footwell for a cassette – bad. Now most folk have an ipod/iphone attached to the car – is that any better? Do most folk who select a new album on their phone (in a holder, on the seat next to them or wherever) perceive that as using their phone?

Shell had posters in their Aberdeen hq years ago..along the lines of..if you called a mobile you had to establish if other person was driving and if he was call back later else you’d be complicit in dangerous behaviour. That was 15 yrs ago no idea if they still practice that.

I once upset a woman driver by gesturing that she shouldn’t use her phone while driving.

She wound down her window to have a go back but I stunned her first by pointing out that we would stop lift sharing the boys to Cubs if she ever tried to use her phone with my lad in her car. 😆

Not sure where we are with music in cars now either. Previously it was all about ferreting around in the footwell for a cassette – bad. Now most folk have an ipod/iphone attached to the car – is that any better? Do most folk who select a new album on their phone (in a holder, on the seat next to them or wherever) perceive that as using their phone?

Regardless, when you run into someone due to distraction, you would rightly be found to blame.

A blog I read today from West Midlands Police says we should simply point at them, no one likes being pointed at.
Whether it would work is another matter.
I see it at every junction, every day. Its endemic now & people simply think its as acceptable as driving through that light that’s ‘just’ turned red..

Dunno about pointing, but endemic is the right word.

I think my loud “get off your effing phone” obviously triggered more fight than flight in the woman this evening, she was yapping on a phone in her left hand clear as day, heard me and screeched to a halt in the middle of the road. “what **** phone!?!” “the one you just stuck in the middle” she pulls her pink iPhone out of the drivers door pocket, expecting this to convince me I’ve gone blind, the phone she was on was black, and in her left hand, plus she has a very quiet passenger, looks like her mum, must be so proud…

It’s the front that comes with a lot of them, knowing they can try to bullshit and shout their way out of being noticed breaking the law.

So I just said “sure love” and carried on home, not with worth getting into it and despite all the noise she knew she was in the wrong…

But I think I will just avoid the confrontations from now on, achieves nothing and sooner or later I will meet someone properly nasty…

Just wish the rozzers could be arsed, all they need to do is sit quietly in any of a dozen local sports and snap the dickheads in the act…

People in cars never admit they they are wrong and go straight on the offensive.
You could always squirt them with a water bottle.. But then challenging motorists is a bit like throwing petrol on a fire..

Going to get flamed for this I know but I think there are grades of badness. Using your phone whilst flying along at 70 on the motorway or negotiating a roundabout – really bad. Using it whilst stationary in a jam on the motorway or even whilst crawling along – not so much.

While I see your point I disagree, whether you are doing 5 or 55 you still have a duty to pay attention to driving above all else, and traffic speeds can change quite quickly, you reckon most of them end their calls as soon as they clear a bit of traffic? Do they bollocks!

challenging motorists is a bit like throwing petrol on a fire..

Yep, I need to moderate my response, which is clearly arse about face, but probably makes for good self preservation…

Gets on my bits too, but really annoys me are those driving with headphones on, both earbuds in, or even worse big over the ear jobbies

I’m told its illegal to drive whilst wearing wired headphones – is this true?

Going to get flamed for this I know but I think there are grades of badness. Using your phone whilst flying along at 70 on the motorway or negotiating a roundabout – really bad. Using it whilst stationary in a jam on the motorway or even whilst crawling along – not so much.

Every accident (all 3) have been at under 10mph while being distracted. Usually on a warm, sunny day by a pretty woman 😆

My phone sits in the front of the centre console plugged into the Aux socket to play music, a huge playlist of random stuff. Never gets touched while driving.

I’m told its illegal to drive whilst wearing wired headphones – is this true?

I was told the same. Can’t find any legal reference to it though.

I do 33 miles of motorway every morning and every evening. I despair at the number of people on their phones. Either talking or, those who who keep looking down at the phone in their lap while they text.

The other thing I see not end of that really gets my goat is people who use satnav by sticking in right in front of their face. Please stick it somewhere that doesn’t obscure 50% of you field of vision.

I use the universal phone symbol and make it obvious to the driver so that other roadusers can see and simulate putting the phone down. If they ignore, do it again & have tapped on the door glass doing this before. Has worked 50% the time, when it doesn’t not worth imo getting in a confrontation. Its more than frustrating as everyone knows its downright dangerous – I pointed out a 7.5 tonne driver using mobile to on-coming police car at a mini roundabout & they pulled the driver over!

It’s annoying but the truth is your interventions won’t achieve anything other than getting yourself more wound up.

No need to get wound up – truth is you can get results! 🙂

I do quite high mileage and see it every day. Really annoys me, especially parents with children in their car or hgv / paid drivers, but they’re all bad and breaking the law. But I find myself more annoyed than those doing it. Generally even when pointing it out they don’t give a damn.

convert

Going to get flamed for this I know but I think there are grades of badness. Using your phone whilst flying along at 70 on the motorway or negotiating a roundabout – really bad. Using it whilst stationary in a jam on the motorway or even whilst crawling along – not so much.

Just to elaborate, he was driving, not static. Not on the motorway true. But in control of many tons of bus full of people. Texting away as he moved along with traffic.

Not sure where we are with music in cars now either. Previously it was all about ferreting around in the footwell for a cassette – bad. Now most folk have an ipod/iphone attached to the car – is that any better? Do most folk who select a new album on their phone (in a holder, on the seat next to them or wherever) perceive that as using their phone?
Regardless, when you run into someone due to distraction, you would rightly be found to blame.

Easy peasy… Connect phone, set up a playlist longer than needed for journey, hit play, put phone in door, glovebox, arm rest etc. Start engine and drive off.

How flilipng hard is that….

I am not exactly an early adopter for tech and my car is old and uncomplicated but I can figure it out and make it work.

I hate it.

I often think about taking a photo of them on the phone and emailing it to the local constabulary and their employer ( if in a marked vehicle). Not sure whether any action would come of it, but if they see me taking the photo it might make them think twice.

Garage dweller – You missed my point entirely. My point is that we have recently invented a new distraction – is it socially acceptable to use it on the move? I’m sure there will be some rule follower responses along the lines of ‘if you cause an accident whilst hunting for Girls Aloud on your iPod you be in hot water’ as responded previously but again that’s missing the point. If you got in a car with someone who then hunted through their device for a tune would you see that as normal, be seething inside but not say anything or be compelled to make a protest?

It needs to be made as bad as drink driving.
I have to cross a dual carriageway where the jam crawls along at 5 Mph.
The amount of ( mainly ladies ) people looking down at their phones and not me crossing is scary.
The cops should filter down the jam on a bike and nab the lot of them.

hands free devices and voice to text etc are just as bad as using a handheld

FATAL DISTRACTION? A COMPARISON OF THE CELL-PHONE
DRIVER AND THE DRUNK DRIVER

Summary
: We used a high-fidelity driving simulator to compare the performance of
cell-phone drivers with drivers who were legally intoxicated from ethanol.

When drivers were conversing on either a hand-held or hands-free cell-phone, their reactions were sluggish and they attempted to compensate by driving slower and increasing the following distance from the vehicle immediately in front of them.

By contrast, when drivers were legally intoxicated they exhibited a more aggressive driving style, following closer to the vehicle immediately in front of them and applying more force while braking.

When controlling for driving difficulty and time on task, cell-phone drivers exhibited greater impairment than intoxicated drivers.

Gets on my bits too, but really annoys me are those driving with headphones on, both earbuds in, or even worse big over the ear jobbies

Yeah!….and those who are deaf or hard of hearing, bout time we did something about them as well.

You may guess I sometimes wear headphones or in ear headphones, inattentive and careless driving is the cause of collisions on our roads.

That is a pretty **** excuse

I consided getting some hard to remove stickers made that I can just slap on the windows in traffic, my wife quite rightly told me I was being petty and just make sure you avoid them. God it winds me up, this week in high winds and hail and still idiots on phones, I say disable them in cars.

Honestly I rarely see folks using their phones at home in Hampshire, however I see it all the time in London when working.
As everyone knows there are some bottlenecks in Town just outside of the congestion zones and Spitalfileds is particularly bad. It’s also a main run for cyclists, which means 70% of the time we’re not only riding along with Trucks/Taxis/Busses and those sodding Addison Lee Private Hire things that often we’re too busy to notice such things as mobile phone use whilst driving.. But on a few occasions it’s true, drivers do use thier phones.

I had a particular event a few weeks ago coming down Old St when a woman in a Passat pulled out in front of me into the Bus Lane whilst on her phone. Doing 15mph it’s easy to roll up alongside and do the “fake phone to ear” signal, in this instance she just pulled out sideways to get out of the bus lane into me. Luckily there was nothing in the right lane or I’d have been squashed. I paced her to the lights, looked her right in the eye and told her to get off her phone and that she’d just pulled out on me etc. to which she gave me the finger, I loudly laughed whilst keeping eye contact.
She didn’t like that.
The lights changed, she cut across 3 lanes of traffic to escape causing chaos as she pulled out. I reckon she’s used to being pulled over or being told off for phone use/bad driving.

But I’m squishy, cars aren’t, sometimes it’s just best to get right on out of the way and ride defensively.. It’s often way more enjoyable too.

I ride 40km a day through London on my commute and unfortunately mobile phone use among motorists is incredibly common

I believe its become worse in the past years since the “smartphone” became widespread because there is easy access to the internet with all its distractions

I witness all kinds of motorists driving in London on their hand held phones including private vehicles, buses, taxis, heavy goods vehicles(!)

Its also very obvious when a vehicle is stationary after the lights have changed to green 9/10 times they are distracted tapping on a smart phone screen or using their phone, I see a lot of “private hire” and Addison Lee drivers doing this in London

On several occasions I’ve managed to alert Police who have caught a driver red handed, but this is rare as there are very few Police to be seen on London’s streets.

The most blatant abuse I see is during the “school run” in NW London around Hampstead and Highgate.

I will go out for an early morning ride on my road bike, and coming back down some of the hills towards Swiss Cottage there will be long queues of stationary or slowly moving traffic. I will carefully overtake on the driver side, keeping an eye on the drivers in case they suddenly pull out. With the elevated height sat on a bike, you can see straight into the driver cabin, so its very obvious what they are doing.

I’d estimate that 3/4 of these drivers are tapping on a smartphone or busy talking on their hand held.

I’ve seen motorists with a book propped up on the steering wheel, going through paperwork on a clipboard and recently a women eating rice from a china plate propped up on her lap whilst she drove forward in a long queue!

If only the Police would take a ride down these roads, they’d nick 100’s of motorists 😉

I’m seeing increasing iPad use, let alone phone. Guy the other night driving an Audi R8 with an IPad resting in his lap and I’ve seen people holding them against steering wheel as well. Most notably a minibus driver merging into the M4 near Heathrow