Merseyside Police mobile phone clampdown catches 115

Sep 22 2007 Liverpool Daily Post

DOZENS of Merseyside drivers have been issued with penalty notices and court summonses following the first force-wide attempt to shame those using mobile phones.

Merseyside Police successfully piloted Operation Mobile Cam in Sefton in May but spread it out across the region last week.

This latest operation, which took place on September 13, saw a total of 115 people issued with fixed penalties or a summons.

Pictures have been taken of those responsible and placed on the police website. A total of 447 summonses and fixed penalties for seat belt offences were also issued.

The operation is aimed at deterring people from using their phones while driving following the in- troduction of new legis- lation in February, which increased the penalties for those caught using a mobile to three penalty points and a £60 fine.

Motorists are four times more likely to be involved in a crash if they are using a phone while driving, while research by the Transport Research Laboratory has also shown reaction times are 30% worse than driving while drunk, and 50% worse than when driving in normal conditions.

Inspector Dave Bell, of the Roads Policing unit, said: “The trial in Sefton proved that there are still too many people flouting the law and putting lives at risk by using a mobile phone while driving and the Force feels this is something which needs to tackle head-on.

“Our whole aim is to reduce the number of people committing this offence and ultimately reduce road injuries and road deaths. There is extensive research that clearly demonstrates that it is a dangerous offence – offenders are not only risking their safety but the safety of innocent motorists and pedestrians too. This operation is not about punishing motorists but reinforcing the message that using their phone when they are behind the wheel is an offence which could have serious consequences.”

The breakdown of mobile phone offenders by policing district was: Wirral 13; Sefton 29; Knowsley 13; St Helens 12; Liverpool North 20; Liverpool South 14 and the Roads Policing team 14.

Inspector Bell added: “The public need to be aware that we will continue to run these operations until we bring about a significant culture changes in people’s attitudes to this offence.

“The ultimate measure of success would be to find very few motorists using their phones. I sincerely hope this results in a major reduction of people using their phone behind the wheel.”

Merseyside Police caught 900 people breaking this law in March this year.

VISIT the Merseyside Police website at www.merseyside.police.uk to view the images of people caught using a phone behind the wheel.

OPINION: PAGE 6