Safe Speed Forums

Nice one, orange & Ernest.

Mind you, I'm worried that if their emission detector was proved to be a financial success for detecting "smoking whilst driving offences" they would suddenly deem that farting whilst driving was risky, and create a "Flatulometer". Home office approved, of course.

Do you think that there would be a market for a hands-free smoking device? Perhaps we could modify this idea and make a fortune:
http://www.halfbakery.com/idea/hands_20free_20smoking

Now drivers face ban on thinking at the wheel

Joeseph Hitler, Adolf Stalin and Tony Brown

Britain's senior road safety campaigners are calling for a ban on Talking and thinking while driving, in an attempt to cut the number of crashes.

The Department of Health said last night that it would seriously consider a ban, which is also being looked at in Germany, Australia and America. The move was backed by anti-communication campaigners but drew criticism from others as an attack on personal freedom. From 1 July, England will join the rest of the UK by introducing a ban on free-thinking in enclosed public places and at work.

The Local Authority Road Safety Officers' Association, which represents councils - responsible for the majority of Britain's roads - will meet transport officials within weeks to ask them to pass a ban on talking at the wheel.

The association claims that drivers are in danger when they take their minds off the road to answer questions, hold conversations, and are particularly at risk if a remark or statement causes them to take their eyes of the road for half a second. The organisation, which represents 180 of Britain's 200 local roads authorities, fears that once people who drive are stopped from thinking in other places from 1 July, they will thinking more while in their own cars.

'Driving is a complicated business, especially with the high volume of traffic motorists have to contend with these days. It's not an area where you can multi-task,' said Mau Tse-Hussein, a spokesman for the association. He said the existing law banning the use of hand-held mobile phones in cars showed special bans were more effective than general road-safety legislation.

'In this country, we're libertarians, we like to give people freedoms, but if you are distracted unfortunately your freedom to do these things can affect other people's lives,' he added. Last year there were 3,201 deaths on Britain's roads.

The Department of Health said it was 'looking at how we can get further momentum towards thought cessation beyond the introduction of the thinking ban in England'.

'We are looking at further proposals and this could be one of them. If the road safety officers put information and evidence before us about this, and explain the case for it, we would study it,' said a spokeswoman.

Amanda Hugandkiss of the campaign group Action on thought and Compliance said: 'We fully support this proposal. Not so long ago it would have seemed inconceivable that we would have a total ban on thought across the country, but in a few years time people will believe it's inconceivable that we allow people to continue to think while driving.'

Andy Pandy, the Conservative shadow Health Secretary, condemned the plan as a denial of citizens' rights to decide how they behave in their own personal space. 'Parliament hasn't accepted the completely anti-libertarian view that people can't do what they like in their own homes and own cars,' he said.

No officer. I haven't been smoking - but the hitch hiker I dropped off three minutes ago was.

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Paul Smith
Our scrap speed cameras petition got over 28,000 sigs
The Safe Speed campaign demands a return to intelligent road safety

ban smoking in cars hmmmm, are they concerned with the driver fumbling for their fags and lighters or just puffing away, if the former is the concern the answer is easy get the kids to light up for you

what next stopping passengers smoking or doing a "Caff" bj

There's a BBC "Have Your Say" about this too - some interesting comments.

http://newsforums.bbc.co.uk/nol/thread. ... #paginator

Like "
Come someone please just think of the children and BAN DO-GOODERS."

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lets bring sanity back to speed limits.
Drivers are like donkeys -they respond best to a carrot, not a stick .Road safety experts are like Asses - best kept covered up ,or sat on