Police bust 200 motorists a day for violating ban on mobile use

A week after the ban on using cellphones while driving came into effect, city police had warned 1,294 violators, or some 200 cases per day, a senior official said yesterday.

Deputy Metropolitan Police Bureau chief Maj-General Panu Kerdlarppol said police did not have the additional manpower to effectively reinforce the new rule because the offence was "considered petty".

He said police had difficulties imposing the ban, including the inability to see through tinted windows, especially in the rain or at night, to check if drivers were using cellphones.

Catching offenders

There were not enough devices to help detect law-breakers and not enough police to set up checkpoints.

As most violations took place during rush hour, police stopping suspects would result in traffic jams, according to Panu.

Many motorists also argued they were unaware when the ban came into effect, that they did not know how to properly use the hand-free devices or their phones were not compatible with hand-free devices.

Some even urged police not to enforce the law so that they could have "their behaviour adjustment" as well as a reduction in the "rather high" fines, Panu said.

Panu insisted the ban was for the benefit of the majority and for better road safety, so people should cooperate and help police in looking for violators.