DRIVERS who use their phones while behind the wheel are the targets of the latest operation on central Victorian roads.
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The first phase of Operation Millet will run throughout May and will see all police officers, including highway patrol, general duties and detectives, on the lookout for people using mobile phones or other electronic devices while driving.
The operation follows a concerning trend seen on local roads last year.
Almost 18 per cent of fatal collisions and 22 per cent of serious injury crashes were believed to have involved mobile phone use or distraction from other electronic devices.
Bendigo Highway Patrol Senior Sergeant Ian Brooks said the prevalence of these crashes indicated that people were ignoring messages around safety, even thought it was well-known that distractions caused crashes.
“People who deliberately take those risks… are putting themselves, they’re putting their loved ones, they’re putting someone else’s loved ones at risk,” Senior Sergeant Brooks said.
He said for some people, this continued risk-taking was a matter of thinking it would not happen to them, but it was also a societal problem because of the way phones had become such an integral part of people’s lives.
Many crashes could be avoided, Senior Sergeant Brooks said, by people taking responsibility and not using their phone behind the wheel.
He said those who did choose to use their phones and were caught doing so would elicit no sympathy.
It is illegal to use a hand-held phone while driving, and mobile phones used hands-free must be fitted in a purpose-built holder.
The use of both hand-held and hands-free devices is illegal for drivers carrying a learner permit or provisional licence.
Drivers found using their mobile phones may be issued with an on-the-spot fine of $466 and incur four demerit points.
The Transport Accident Commission says using a mobile phone while driving can impair a motorist’s reaction time, ability to maintain speed and distance on the road, ability to judge safe gaps in traffic, visual search patterns, and general awareness of traffic.
A vehicle travelling at 50km/h will cover nearly 28 metres while its driver is distracted for just two seconds.
At 100km/h, a vehicle will travel more than 55 metres in that time.
Natalie Croxon
Reporter at the Illawarra Mercury, mostly covering social affairs. Previously of the Bendigo Advertiser, Northern Daily Leader and Quirindi Advocate. Our Watch award winner.
Reporter at the Illawarra Mercury, mostly covering social affairs. Previously of the Bendigo Advertiser, Northern Daily Leader and Quirindi Advocate. Our Watch award winner.
