South Wales motorists risk losing licence in roadside eye tests

“That's fair enough, if the police can prove that I've no problem with that. But simply touching or picking up your mobile while the car is stationery in traffic cannot make you not in proper control of your vehicle. There was even a case recently where a woman had pulled off the road to answer her phone yet because the keys were still in the ignition she was deemed to be driving.

The last case I saw in court the driver was waiting at a junction and he leaned forward to push a button on his phone to connect his blue tooth. The prosecution admitted his car was stationery, they admitted he posed absolutely no threat to anyone on the road, they admitted he hadn't been in communication with anyone in any shape or form but he still ended up with financial penalties of over £160.

The ironic thing was because he was stationery it enabled a police officer in a van alongside him to see him, if he waited until he was actually driving and therefore arguably a greater threat to other road users he would never have been caught.”

“Maxmin - the law isn't narrowly defined at all. Many people are collecting points for smoking, drinking and eating whilst driving, on the basis that they are not in full control of their vehicle.

http://tinyurl.com/bwof6cm”

“The reason I say the mobile phone law is just for raising cash is because basically it defies all logic, which I suspect is why so many people flout it.

For example let us say you have two communication devices sitting on top of your dashboard. One is a portable two way radio and the other is a mobile phone. Now if you want to you can chat away on the radio to your heart's content while doing 70 mph down the motorway and you are committing no offence. If however you are stationery in traffic and touch - just touch not use - the mobile phone you are committing an offence. Similarly if you're are using your Nintendo to do a spot of alien shooting whilst driving, or speaking into a hand held recording device - no offence.

In other words the law is so narrowly defined it makes absolutely no sense at all - unless of course you want to set up a load of easy collars for lazy policemen and raise a lot of cash.
If it really was about safety then we already had a suitable law in place - driving without due care and attention or dangerous driving. However in these cases the authorities are obliged to take you to court and prove their case - fair enough. But in the case of the mobile phone they can issue you with a Fixed Penalty Notice, which does not oblige them to take you to court and thus robs you of the opportunity of defending yourself. Even if innocent of the charge many people simply pay up to avoid the bother and expense, don't forget as a motorist you are not entitled to legal aid so you are on your own.

Any law passed should be with the sole intention of benefitting the people, to make their lives safer and easier, if that is done you will be surprised how many people recognise that and generally adhere to it. Here's a simple test. Cut out all the hyperbole and waffle and go to the bottom line - does it involve taking money out of your pocket and putting it in theirs. If it does - well that says it all really.

There are many, many things we can do to make the roads safer. The first is to insist that all road users use the road responsibly. The other day I was waiting at some red lights near Burry Port and about a dozen cyclists in a bunch just rode straight through them, causing a van coming in the opposite direction to swerve violently to avoid a collision. They did that knowing full well no-one was ever going to bother about them.

Then we need to ensure that the road engineering is safe, remove obstacles from your vision so you can see the dangers. Drive up to the top of Denham avenue and when you get there you see that your view to the right - where the danger is going to come from - is completely blocked. All you have to do is to move the obstructing posts to the left side of the junction to make that much safer. Will they do it? Of course not.

And finally we need to ensure that road users are physically capable of using the road safely - and that includes being able to see properly!”

“skewenboy - Until now little attention has been paid to catching drivers with poor eyesight. When police attend an accident, the first thing they do is breath test the drivers - they seldom, if ever check their eyesight.

Using a mobile phone when driving is an offence and people are being nicked for it all day long. Like driving over the speed limit or drink driving - the police can't catch everyone. And if you believe they're going to sit outside your house for hours on end waiting for a noisy exhaust or possible speeding driver - you can think again.”

“SPOT ON SKEWENBOY”

“Several years ago the RAC held eye tests for motorists filling up at a fuel station. Over 60% failed the standard test.

I don't understand what you mean by 'speeding drivers' being mixed with pedestrians. Unless the drivers are driving on the pavement it is irrelevant what speed a passing car is doing.

My point is very simple to understand. The most dangerous thing for a driver is to be unable to see where they are going. Or are you saying that's fine as long as he doesn't use a mobile phone?

The mobile phone is another way to raise cash - nothing to do with road safety.”

“@maxmin
You're making an assumption that a lot of drivers have defective vision.
This won't be proven until the results of the next four weeks are known.
Using mobile phones by masses of drivers is dangerous & speeding kills more the higher it is when mixed with pedestrians.
i was forced onto the pavement, doing £90 of damage to my car, by a mobile phone user on MY side of the road.”

“I see the mouth is at it yet again.”

“Skewenboy when trying to improve a situation you tackle the most serious problem first and deal with less important matters later. In driving the most important thing is for the driver to be able to see where they are going. Your comments about drivers 'speeding' and noisy exhausts unfortunately tell us what sort of person you are.”

“Ha!!! You two make me laugh! Holier than thou, is it???
EVERY DAY I see people driving while using their mobile phones. It's a shame the 'police' don't do a bit more to stop that extremely dangerous practise before they move on to something else!!!! A publicity exercise is it, to justify their cost to the council tax payer?

"There is no excuse for driving with poor or untested eyesight."" And even less excuse for driving while using your phone. But still it goes on, and on, and on....

Let me say I agree with the principle. But how about they do a bit more about dealing with ongoing problems before starting something new?

I complained recently about cars speeding up the road outside my house; and cars with totally illegal exhausts making so much noise; parking on zig-zags and double yellows; driving in the dark in the mornings with no lights; driving with a dog on your lap. I was told that none of these was regarded as a priority.

Unbelievable.”