The current fines don't seem to put anyone off - it is pathetically little for something so dangerous.

$1000 might make people think a bit more. But to be honest the odds of getting caught must be about zero anyway - not sure the cops really care. 

I live near Mt Eden Road in Auckland. You can stand at any bus stop and look at the cars going by. There are a very high number of people that have 'that' look. The one where the eyes are darting down to their lower left every few seconds. Sure enough as they go past you see them holding their phone in their left hand.

I actually saw a young woman yesterday doing that eyes down look - as she went past she actually had both hands on her mobile.

For the record and for those who don't know - Mt Eden Road is a pretty busy road.

sesh $1000? that seems a little excessive...

probably more than many are paying for the device itself!

hio77:

 

sesh $1000? that seems a little excessive...

 

Absolutely not. Think about the misery and overall costs resulting from smashes that can be caused by people texting when driving.

Oh, of course - who do you work for? I would have thought that a responsible telco staffer would agree with the OP.

I'm all for it.

Fed up with near misses etc. 

hio77:

sesh $1000? that seems a little excessive...

probably more than many are paying for the device itself!

eracode:

 

hio77:

 

sesh $1000? that seems a little excessive...

 

 

Absolutely not. Think about the misery and overall costs resulting from smashes that can be caused by people texting when driving.

 

Oh, of course - who do you work for? I would have thought that a responsible telco staffer would agree with the OP.

 

You have misunderstood.

I do not agree with mobile usage while driving, That is what hands free kits are for or just doing the right thing and pulling over...

i do however feel dropping such an large fine on someone would impact alot more than just the person responsible; think low income family etc. (it's certainly not just the rich i see using mobiles afterall...)

I personally would much rather see it become a demerit deducting offense as well as a reasonable cost.

Then if someone undertakes such actions repetitively, their license is lost. rather than just building debt.

You could make the fine $1 million but it all means nothing if it's not enforced (which it's not). 

I actually don't mind seeing people talking on phones. IMO is no worse than drinking from a drink bottle or chatting to someone else in the car. It's txting or checking IG/FB that's the problem as it takes your eyes off the road. 

$1000 is a pretty good deterrent though. 

I do have BT handsfree in my car....

robjg63:

 

The current fines don't seem to put anyone off - it is pathetically little for something so dangerous.

 

$1000 might make people think a bit more. But to be honest the odds of getting caught must be about zero anyway - not sure the cops really care. 

 

At a guess, they might do what they've done in NSW:

 

Mobile phone detection cameras in NSW to switch on December 1

 

The cameras, some of which will be fixed and others moved around on trailers, will target those who use their phone illegally behind the wheel, day and night.

 

The high-definition cameras, which have been tested throughout the year, have captured more than 100,000 drivers carelessly using social media and texting while driving.

https://7news.com.au/travel/driving/mobile-phone-detection-cameras-in-nsw-to-switch-on-december-1-c-575799

I think the fine in NSW is over $300, and you get demerit points.  (edit - doh - $377-$477 and 5 demerit points it's in the article linked).

On a related subject, NZTA is taking over from Police,  running the speed camera system in NZ.

https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/404447/transport-agency-to-take-over-speed-cameras-from-police

That's going to be fun - my guess, "under new management" will also mean "with great enthusiasm" by new owner.

I walk past a relatively busy pedestrian crossing on my way home each day.  It's not unusual to see drivers do some last minute braking as someone's crossing the road because they were too busy looking down on their phone to see them approach.  It happened last night when the girl (maybe late teens) hurriedly stopped then turned to look at me as if to say 'you didn't see that right?'.

My view is almost at the stage of either clamp down HARD on it or controversially potentially just make it legal again.  At least when it was legal phones were held above the dashboard meaning the user had the road and oncoming traffic on their horizon.  Most people I see are steering at their crotch most of the time (where "definitely nobody can see them using a phone") with an occasional quick glance up which I think has made it much more frightening and unsafe!

hio77:

 

eracode:

 

hio77:

 

sesh $1000? that seems a little excessive...

 

 

Absolutely not. Think about the misery and overall costs resulting from smashes that can be caused by people texting when driving.

 

Oh, of course - who do you work for? I would have thought that a responsible telco staffer would agree with the OP.

 

 

You have misunderstood.

 

I do not agree with mobile usage while driving, That is what hands free kits are for or just doing the right thing and pulling over...

 

i do however feel dropping such an large fine on someone would impact alot more than just the person responsible; think low income family etc. (it's certainly not just the rich i see using mobiles afterall...)

 

I personally would much rather see it become a demerit deducting offense as well as a reasonable cost.

 

Then if someone undertakes such actions repetitively, their license is lost. rather than just building debt.

 

No - the fine is meant to be a deterrent. If the existing penalty is not deterring people from an extremely dangerous practice, increase the penalty. If you can’t afford the fine penalty or want want to avoid it, cease the practice.

I recon if they managed to catch everyone using phones while driving, at $1000 a pop it would soon pay off our national debt.

Fully agree with this fine but of course the cops have got to enforce it. But then you watch reality cop shows and you see cops with "Blues & 2's" and one hand on the steering wheel and the other holding the hand held mic - WT*.

Would also like to see introduced, widely, "Fixed dual speed and red light cameras" and way more "average speed cameras" than the two they have in Auckland, with stiff penalties. Both these systems are a deterrent but as always it all boils down to EVERYONE (drivers & passengers) taking responsibility for their actions and this starts from the cradle and ends in the grave.

If its that important to you why not confiscate the offending article ? 1st offense get it back after a week, 2nd offense 2 weeks... But then that wouldn't be lining the coffers of some government department somewhere...

(no this isn't a carefully thought out strategy)