Most of us in North America are familiar with the endless hype over the danger of cell phone use in a moving vehicle, and the fines involved. Most intelligent and informed people realize that for many years now, most countries have had laws that allow police to pull you over and fine you for distracted driving. Distracted driving for any reason. Yet we have these new laws that focus on cell phone use. There is no reason for a specific law, other than perhaps to make it easier to enforce fines for a city (or municipal) cash cow.
But what about all the other distracting things people do in a car? Eating, drinking coffee, using the sound system, helping the children, getting something out of the back seat or glove box, talking to passengers, putting make-up on, brushing teeth, etc. Who hasn’t watched all these things in another car, and more. Yet no one gets pulled over for any of these.
This past Saturday morning, we are driving down Portage Avenue in Winnipeg, heading out for breakfast. And in front of us we see a Winnipeg Police car, driven by a single female police officer, and she is swerving back and forth in the lane. We pull up along side and look down into the car from the higher truck we are in. And she is busy typing on the car’s laptop while she is driving, and being the only officer in the car, I suppose she felt the need to do so while driving. Completely focused on the laptop and typing, she is looking down and to the side for long periods at a time, while driving in normal traffic.
So I will ask the obvious question, is typing and reading a laptop in a car safer than holding a cell phone in one hand? Or is typing on a laptop with one or two hands plus reading the detail on the screen safer? Not to mention the ridiculous hypocrisy of a person who’s sole job is to protect citizens, doing something far more distracting than holding a cell phone, something she likely gives fines for countless times a day.
(Example Photo)