Cellphone ban: look who's talking

Many drivers passing under the Hopetoun St bridge were snapped talking on cellphones - including these two who saw the lighter side of the situation. Photo / Steven McNicholl

Many drivers are disobeying the law that makes it illegal to use a cellphone behind the wheel.

In two one-hour sessions the Weekend Herald spotted 50 motorists using handheld phones while driving on five lanes of motorway coming into the city under the Hopetoun St bridge.

Yesterday 17 people looked down to text and eight talked on the phone. On Thursday 16 people chatted, and nine punched out text messages.

One couple played up to the camera, holding their hands up to their ears as mock phones. Others honked or waved.

But most of those using a phone without a legal hands-free kit were too absorbed in texting or talking to notice the camera.

Police say they allowed for a "bedding down" phase this week, giving drivers the benefit of the doubt and mainly issuing warnings.

But from Monday they won't be so kind.

"There will be no excuses in the Auckland district," said Inspector Gavin Macdonald, road policing manager for Auckland city. "You've got to ask yourself 'How long do you keep on going?'. They are all intelligent people, they should be saying to themselves that the reason the law is there is to save lives."

Mr Macdonald said that although the Weekend Herald survey results seemed bad, they were probably an improvement on before the law change.

"You used to drive into town and see up to 20 people using their cellphones and now you don't see so many," he said.

In July Mr Macdonald said cellphones were partly to blame for a steep rise in Auckland road deaths, after a two-year lull. Fifty-four people had died in the region - one fewer than for the whole of last year.

This time, our photographers snapped "a constant stream" of motorists talking and texting behind the wheel from busy city vantage points. One man held the pie he was eating with both hands; a uniformed ambulance driver sent a text message.

Mr Macdonald said it was too early to say how many people had been nabbed since the law change, as tickets were handwritten and sent to Wellington to be entered into a database. Some might not be sent for days after they were issued, he said.

Road policing manager Superintendent Paula Rose said officers had been using their discretion and professional judgment about whether people were deliberately flouting the law.

"Notices are being issued for some, warnings for others - depending on the circumstances," she said.

"It has only been in for less than a week so that's why we take a softly, softly approach with the legislation when people are unsure what it means for them."

Ms Rose was amazed at the number of people who still had questions about what the ban required.

Police Association president Greg O'Connor said drivers were guiltily reacting to uniformed police.

"I have spoken to officers around Auckland and the view seems to be that when they are in marked cars people are putting their phones down and taking note," he said.

"A couple of times people saw a police car and the look on their face was clearly a realisation, it's obviously in their psyche they shouldn't do it."

Mr O'Connor said that in a year, people would look back and question having ever used phones while driving.

"It will be like the smoking ban in pubs, people won't be able to believe it was legal," he said. "Or when the novelty of the ban has worn off people might forget, but only time will tell."

Automobile Association spokesman Mike Noon said he had noticed a huge reduction in drivers talking and texting over the last week. "It's going to take some time, but just like putting your seatbelt on you should turn your phone off."