Hands-free mobile plan 'false security'

Motorists will continue to die for a phone call because a proposed ban on cellphone use while driving does not go far enough, an injury researcher says.

Canadian Louis Francescutti, a safety advocate, said the Government would fail drivers if it allowed them to continue using hands-free cellphones while banning them from using hand-held devices.

His comments come as a study shows that motorists who use cellphones while driving are four to six times more likely to be involved in a crash, and that cellphone use slows drivers' reaction time by 18 percent.

"The worst thing the Government could do is only ban hand-helds," he told The Dominion Post yesterday from Edmonton.

"It gives people a false sense of security. There is absolutely no difference between hand-held and hands-free devices."

Transport Ministry officials are considering 56 submissions on a planned rule change that would make hand-held cellphone use illegal while driving. All 56 submissions - including those from Telecom, Vodafone and the AA - support a ban.

Recommendations are expected to be put to new Transport Minister Steven Joyce early next year. Those breaking the law would face a fine of $50 and 25 demerit points.

Drivers could still use hands-free devices, something many fear would undermine the ban's effectiveness. Both the Institution of Professional Engineers and the Motoring Writers' Guild backed a total ban in their submissions on the rule change.

Others said a total ban was unrealistic.

"A total ban on the use of hands-free devices ... would result in a significant impediment on business," the Insurance Council says in its submission.

Dr Francescutti, who recently spoke at a safety conference in Christchurch, said more than 200 studies highlighted the risks of driving while talking on a cellphone and that it was "equivalent to driving impaired".

In New Zealand, between 2002 and 2007 cellphone use was a contributing factor in at least 411 injury crashes and 26 deaths.

Politicians were slow to act on the matter, often because they used cellphones while driving.

"But if they are concerned about wait times in hospitals, healthcare costs, inefficiency and reducing injuries, this is one issue they should address."

- © Fairfax NZ News