“Road safety is one of the great public-health success stories of the last century. The statistics around motor-vehicle-related injury and death tell the story. The numbers have barely changed since the 1930s,” writes MICHAEL MOORE

THEY drive me crazy! Veering all over the road like drunken drivers of a past era. Putting themselves in danger all because they cannot wait a moment to send a text or wait to return a call.” MICHAEL MO0ORE welcomes phone-detection cameras.

At last, the ACT has introduced legislation to make it easier to identify people using hand-held mobile phones while driving. The use of phones while driving is already illegal. However, regular breaches of the law are obvious when driving around Canberra.

It is one thing to have a law in place. It is another to ensure that it is able to be policed or that the appropriate deterrent is in place. The introduction of mobile-phone detection cameras is an important step forward in increasing the safety of people on the road.

There are not many of us who have not been guilty of this infraction at some time since the advent of mobile phones. However, with the growing evidence of the impact they are having on driving, it is high time that an end was put to this practice. 

Deterrents will never deliver a 100 per cent result. There are still drunk drivers on the road despite the use of random breath tests. However, we have come a long way and the roads are much safer from drink driving than they were a few decades ago.

Road safety is one of the great public-health success stories of the last century. The statistics around motor-vehicle-related injury and death tell the story. The numbers have barely changed since the 1930s. This is not per capita. It is not per car. Nor is it per kilometre driven. Just raw figures.

The success is not due to one intervention but rather a series. Consider the introduction of speed limits, drink-driving laws, better roads, safer cars, seat belts and so on. The demerit points system on driving licences has also introduced important disincentives to non-compliance. This intervention really bites on holiday periods when double-demerits apply.

As each regulation was introduced, there were always the critics complaining of interference in personal freedom and the right to choose. This was most notable with the introduction of compulsory use of seat belts. The arguments went along the lines of “I can take my own risk”. They often ignored or challenged the evidence citing the rare examples of seat belts causing injury. 

With this in mind, there should be no surprise about poor compliance regarding mobile-phone use while driving. Apparently, there are super humans who can text and drive safely at the same time!

There were also those who, no matter what the measure, chose not to comply. This is where facilitation of appropriate policing is so important. Laws that cannot be policed, that have poor compliance are not good laws. That is why the introduction of this piece of legislation is so important. On its own it might not be much. However, when combined with good laws and appropriate policing the community is safer.

These laws are not just a matter of personal freedom. Careless driving has an impact on others and can be really annoying. However, it can also be devastating in the most serious of cases.

There is a second element to this legislation on the introduction of cameras to identify illegal mobile-phone use while driving. The only way for this to be a successful deterrent is for the government to invest appropriately in the number of cameras and to ensure that they are able to be moved around. 

Additionally, education is important. It is hard to believe that people do not know it is illegal to use a hand-held mobile phone while driving. However, the incidence of use would indicate either ignorance or an “I-don’t-care” attitude. Both can be tackled with education about the laws and the introduction of stronger policing methods.

Not being able to use the phone while driving may be annoying. However, it was only about 30 years ago when no-one had phones to use in the car – and people survived!

Michael Moore is a former member of the ACT Legislative Assembly and an independent minister for health. He has been a political columnist with “CityNews” since 2006.