Man caught 18 times for illegal use of mobile phone in the car
A car driver from Rogaland has been stopped 18 times for use a mobile phone illegally in connection with driving. It is probably a Norwegian record.
– This shows little or no respect for the rules of traffic. When caught so many times, the response should be far harsher than only a fine, says Rune Svensen to TV 2. Svensen is head of the traffic and sea section in the Stavanger Police.
He believes there should be repercussions for not using a hands-free when talking on the phone while driving, so that irresponsible drivers can be weeded out of the traffic. He believes the figures show that the fine of NOK 1,650 is not sufficient.
Not alone
On behalf of TV 2, the State Claims Center (Statens Innkrevningssentral, SI) in Mo i Rana has compiled a list of the persons caught for use of mobile phones while driving since 2004. It shows that the driver from Rogaland is not unique. As number two on the list is a person with 16 fines, followed by two people with 13, two with 12, another two with 11, 9 with ten and 18 people with nine claims against them. All are men and have paid their fines.
The ban on the use of mobile phones while driving was introduced in 2000, but SI has only registered data since 2004. Since then more than 207,000 drivers have received fines totaling in excess of NOK 304 million. A recent report from the Transport Economics Institute shows that from 2011 to 2015, 22 of 544 fatalities in traffic are related to fidgeting with mobile phones.
© NTB Scanpix / Norway Today
