Distracted Driving - I plead ignorance

[take8easy]

I know there was a thread about it that has been locked otherwise I would have posted there so stop rolling your eyes with, "Didn't we just have a thread about it!?!?!"

I swear I had no idea that drinking/eating (coffee or snacks etc) while driving is considered distracted driving. Which, of course, means you could get nailed. I drink water fairly frequently so I better watch out.

I just thought it was about texting or talking on the cell phone that was not allowed. Ironically, I heard it from someone who just got his first drivers licence!!

Either LE has not campaigned enough or may be I have been living in a cave all this while.

I totally get talking on the phone or texting but honestly if LE wants to really get picky, then the list of things that can be considered to cause distraction can be endless.

Ok, time to drive thru Timmys to keep myself awake during drive home.

T8E

 

[ddcanz]

I know there was a thread about it that has been locked otherwise I would have posted there so stop rolling your eyes with, "Didn't we just have a thread about it!?!?!"

I swear I had no idea that drinking/eating (coffee or snacks etc) while driving is considered distracted driving. Which, of course, means you could get nailed. I drink water fairly frequently so I better watch out.

I just thought it was about texting or talking on the cell phone that was not allowed. Ironically, I heard it from someone who just got his first drivers licence!!

Either LE has not campaigned enough or may be I have been living in a cave all this while.

I totally get talking on the phone or texting but honestly if LE wants to really get picky, then the list of things that can be considered to cause distraction can be endless.

Ok, time to drive thru Timmys to keep myself awake during drive home.

T8E

It's all about having a mechanism in place to be able to enforce more extreme cases.
Drinking from a water bottle or sipping a coffee- no problem.
Eating a burger, drooling sauce in your lap, looking down and rooting around for napkins- not cool.
Or rummaging through a cooler on the passenger seat for a Gatorade- again- off side.
Or look at it like a Strata bylaw for example.
3.2.1 might say "No flags can be hung or displayed". However, no one will complain if one sports the Maple Leaf. But if you have a Jolly Roger or Southern Cross in lieu of drapes then the hammer will fall.

 

[sybian]

So I can expect a ticket ,while getting road head?

 

[clu]

So I can expect a ticket ,while getting road head?

If the hands free rule is anything to go by, just make sure your partner stays below your line of sight, both hands are on the wheel, and try not to roll your eyes back into your head.*

(*not serious advice)

 

[westwoody]

So I can expect a ticket ,while getting road head?

When you wander into oncoming traffic and kill someone's kids you can tell us how great it felt.

 

[Damaged]

It's all about having a mechanism in place to be able to enforce more extreme cases...

I think it's all about having more ways to increase the revenue stream. Ticketing drivers in a parking lot talking on a cell phone with the engine running is bullshit. I wish they'd do less revenue collecting and focus more on preventing crime and catching criminals.

When you wander into oncoming traffic and kill someone's kids you can tell us how great it felt.

Gotta be a Debbie Downer in every crowd.

 

[tadolder]

this isn't new. We have always had driving with undue care and attention, which covers eating, drinking, and phone use as well, along with other things. The big difference is it comes with 6 points, and wasn't used very often. The distracted driving law was brought in to zero in and draw attention to texting and talking on a phone. I see so many people driving with their phone in their hand on speaker phone in plain sight. Do they really think they are complying with the law? Well they aren't, it's against the law.

 

[badbadboy]

So even in this thread there are mixed messages.

• Talking on the phone hands free via BT - cool?
• Talking on the phone via the phone's speaker while on your lap - not cool?
• Drinking a bottle of water - cool or not cool?
• Talking on the phone while eating a granola bar? Cool or not cool?
• Is the only way to not get a ticket is to have your hands on the wheel all the time? Impossible if you drive a stick

Talk about giving the Cops carte Blanche to pull you over, search your car and give you a BS ticket.

 

[Fullhouse]

So I can expect a ticket ,while getting road head?

Maybe not - if she - (and I'm just assuming it's a 'she') - will give the cop some head as well.

Now, if it's a female cop, you'll probably be busted - but not in the sexual way you were hoping. :nono:..................

 

[ddcanz]

this isn't new. We have always had driving with undue care and attention, which covers eating, drinking, and phone use as well, along with other things. The big difference is it comes with 6 points, and wasn't used very often. The distracted driving law was brought in to zero in and draw attention to texting and talking on a phone. I see so many people driving with their phone in their hand on speaker phone in plain sight. Do they really think they are complying with the law? Well they aren't, it's against the law.

Well said.
I'm not worried in the slightest about enjoying a bottled drink or an easy snack while driving.
Been on the road commuting minimum twice daily- and more with connections to/from other projects throughout the day- for 25+ years and never gotten a sniff from the Man. Even when they are set up at traffic lights, intersections, turn offs or cruising alongside.
Spoke with a couple of cops 2 days ago at a road stop for a fire up ahead, water bottle in hand. NBFD.
If you make some flashy driving manoeuver while jamming a sloppy Whopper in your gap then you deserve what you get.
Whether it's 'fair' or not is beside the point.
And no, I wouldn't be impressed if it happened to me either.

 

[FreeG]

The fines are huge but I'm glad. I really like the feature on the iPhone that automatically responds to texts while you're driving (you can enable/disable the feature) but its definitely helped me keep the phone in the pocket. I swear (and evidence seems to back this up): phones these days are like heroin/crack/opioids! I'm thinking I might lock up my phone at home because I find myself tapping it as I walk by it. Its not like I'm waiting on a phone call from Spielberg to be leading man in his next blockbuster or Elon Musk telling me he's randomly giving me $100M for no reason at all... (tho either would be nice).

As a biker, the distracted driving due to phones is the SCARIEST part of sharing the roads. Accidents happen (its not a matter of 'if' but 'when' as a cyclist), but distracted driving from phones is orders of magnitude worse than eating, drinking, etc. I've seen too many accidents and seen too many cyclists & motorcyclists hurt/killed from it. I'm fully in support of heavy fines for using phones while driving (hands-free is fine; its not much different than talking to someone in the car).

I eat/drink while driving too but I find it much different - my brain is far more engaged on driving, not distracted by a screen, and I can eat/drink with my eyes on the road (even getting the last drop of java, you can turn your head to the side). Yes, some stuff may spill but I still find that easier to handle tactilely about 99% of the time. (it also helps to choose foods that are not going to be too messy)

 

[Addison Cortez]

It was so much easier before they changed the law. Before, I could just hold the phone over the steering wheel, drive with my arms and watch the road behind. Easy. Now I have to watch for police and it is much more distracting.





jk I don't even have a vehicle right now

 

[wintersurfer]

I used to talk (speaker) and text (not while moving) all the time, couple wks ago while talking with Tia I rear ended someone on the Port Mann (not hard but hard enough to exchange info), I was “lucky” traffic was slow, for me that will be the last time...

 

[Cock Throppled]

Think back to when everyone smoked. I was always amazed at how many maneouvers and contortions drivers would get into trying to light a fag, or if the ash fell into a driver''s lap.

Today I watched a huge truck run a red, and the driver had his head down probably texting. THAT was scary. I wasn't in a position to get the plate, name or follow, but that is a driver who will kill someone eventually.

 

[tadolder]

So even in this thread there are mixed messages.

• Talking on the phone hands free via BT - cool?
• Talking on the phone via the phone's speaker while on your lap - not cool?
• Drinking a bottle of water - cool or not cool?
• Talking on the phone while eating a granola bar? Cool or not cool?
• Is the only way to not get a ticket is to have your hands on the wheel all the time? Impossible if you drive a stick

Talk about giving the Cops carte Blanche to pull you over, search your car and give you a BS ticket.

The phone has to be fixed in the car, ie in a phone holder. In the console, on your lap, on the seat, all not acceptable. BT is the only acceptable way of talking on a phone. I think you would have to do a pretty dumb driving maneuver to get a ticket for drinking water or coffee, or a light snack. Having a beef dip may be an issue.

 

[clu]

The phone has to be fixed in the car, ie in a phone holder. In the console, on your lap, on the seat, all not acceptable. BT is the only acceptable way of talking on a phone. I think you would have to do a pretty dumb driving maneuver to get a ticket for drinking water or coffee, or a light snack. Having a beef dip may be an issue.

Anything requiring chopsticks is also a bad idea.

Seriously though tonight with the rain and the reflections on the wet roads and the idiot in the Car2Go in front of me that didn't have his lights on, it makes me think these laws aren't such a bad idea and people should just concentrate on the driving.

 

[Mrmotorscooter]

Anything requiring chopsticks is also a bad idea.

Seriously though tonight with the rain and the reflections on the wet roads and the idiot in the Car2Go in front of me that didn't have his lights on, it makes me think these laws aren't such a bad idea and people should just concentrate on the driving.

My take is there are too many drivers who must have bribed their instructor or paid off the road test person, there is no way some of these idiots are fit to drive nor could they pass a legitimate test.

 

[westwoody]

There have been prosecutions in Ontario for selling tractor trailer licenses. We see guys from Ontario who cannot park or maneuver their trucks safely. Most are central Asian, they look just like Afghans or Uzbeks with their weird hats and pyjamas. Many speak no English, so how can they pass an exam?
Bad enough to have car drivers who cannot drive safely, a fifty ton semi with an incompetent driver is insane.

 

[bdan]

I've seen Super B drivers steering with their elbows while texting. Terrifying.

I've often thought we should have to retake a driving test every ten years. SO many people develop bad habits or just forget what is legal.

There are also some dumb clucks you wonder how they ever passed.

I know an 18 yr old girl who has failed the written test 4x!!

She should never be given a license or maybe each failure have to wait a year. I fear for others when .. OR IF she ever passes!

 

[tadolder]

Anything requiring chopsticks is also a bad idea.

Seriously though tonight with the rain and the reflections on the wet roads and the idiot in the Car2Go in front of me that didn't have his lights on, it makes me think these laws aren't such a bad idea and people should just concentrate on the driving.

I emailed Car2go and Evo asking them to tell their clients to turn on the lights. Its amazing how many people don't realize that the daytime running lights are not the headlights and it doesn't turn on the tail lights. Some car colours are very hard to see when its really raining. I wish the police would start stopping people and publicize the need to turn on lights, even in daytime when its raining.