She Texted About Dinner While Driving. Then a Pedestrian Was Dead

Re:She Texted About Dinner While Driving. Then a Pedestrian ... by satori99 on Friday November 22, 2019 @06:01PM (#21611036)

My city (Sydney, Aus) has recently been rolling out cameras specifically to catch drivers using phones and other devices. These are not speed or red-light cameras -- their only purpose is to determine if a driver has both hands on the wheel and it not distracted by electronic devices.

https://www.lifehacker.com.au/2019/09/phone-detecting-camera...

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Re:She Texted About Dinner While Driving. Then a Pedestrian ... by NullPrefix on Friday November 22, 2019 @07:38PM (#21611580)

>determine if a driver has both hands on the wheel

Wait what?

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Re:She Texted About Dinner While Driving. Then a Pedestrian ... by mc32 on Friday November 22, 2019 @07:47PM (#21611618)

Yeah. No phone; I’m glad about that.

Two hands on the wheel? That’s not necessary and also not possible in some legal scenarios (using car central console, shifting)

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Re:She Texted About Dinner While Driving. Then a Pedestrian ... by satori99 on Friday November 22, 2019 @08:04PM (#21611690)

Australian law says you must keep both hands on the wheel at all times unless changing gears or indicating.

And regarding phones; it is illegal for a driver to be distracted by an electronic device -- even if a passenger is the person using it.

It is quite strict, but the number of preventable deaths with this sort of distraction as a contributing factor is staggeringly high.

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Re:She Texted About Dinner While Driving. Then a Pedestrian ... by indemnity on Saturday November 23, 2019 @02:50AM (#21612980)

cough How many Aussie blokes follow that law? Because a maximum of one hand on the wheel seems to be a requirement to be considered a man.

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Re:She Texted About Dinner While Driving. Then a Pedestrian ... by perl4ever on Friday November 22, 2019 @11:03PM (#21612397)

I googled "holden ute interior" and it appears modern Australian automobiles have a plethora of knobs, buttons, and cupholders, as well as infotainment displays, ventilation controls, etc.

Surely there are numerous situations where someone might take their hand(s) off the wheel other than turn signals or gear shifts. What if a drop bear gets in through the sunroof?

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Re:She Texted About Dinner While Driving. Then a Pedestrian ... by satori99 on Friday November 22, 2019 @11:28PM (#21612468)

I think the intent is that, when not performing any actions such as changing gears or adjusting other driving-relevant controls, you should have your hands on the wheel.

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Re:She Texted About Dinner While Driving. Then a Pedestrian ... by mc32 on Friday November 22, 2019 @11:39PM (#21612504)

How is a camera going to have visibility into determining whether the second hand is doing or not doing sanctioned actions?

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Re:She Texted About Dinner While Driving. Then a Pedestrian ... by satori99 on Saturday November 23, 2019 @12:20AM (#21612627)

The cameras are mounted above roadways on gantry's or overpasses, and they claim to be able to work in all lighting and weather conditions regardless of the vehicle's speed.

My guess is that they aim to identify non-sanctioned actions. They claim to use some sort of machine learning in addition to human verification.

I have no direct experience with them. These are simply the claims made by the authorities when they were trialed.

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Re:She Texted About Dinner While Driving. Then a Pedestrian ... by smabie on Friday November 22, 2019 @08:31PM (#21611819)

How about rolling down the windows? Or what about when you have to turn the wheel a lot and reposition your hands? Or turn on the air conditioning?

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Re:She Texted About Dinner While Driving. Then a Pedestrian ... by satori99 on Friday November 22, 2019 @08:37PM (#21611840)

I am not a lawyer, but I guess those things are allowed, assuming you put your hands back on the wheel again.

I cannot recall ever hearing of anyone charged with such an offense, but I am sure you would not pass a driving test if you didn't use both hands.

https://www.canstar.com.au/car-insurance/6-road-rules-youre-...

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Re:She Texted About Dinner While Driving. Then a Pedestrian ... by mc32 on Friday November 22, 2019 @08:35PM (#21611834)

Also what about people who’re wearing a sling or a cast with an automatic, are they not allowed to drive?

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Re:She Texted About Dinner While Driving. Then a Pedestrian ... by satori99 on Friday November 22, 2019 @08:45PM (#21611866)

The law does not distinguish between automatic or manual transmissions.

I am not sure about the cast/sling situation. But I imagine if it was considered a contributory factor in an accident, you would be culpable.

https://www.canstar.com.au/car-insurance/6-road-rules-youre-...

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Re:She Texted About Dinner While Driving. Then a Pedestrian ... by smabie on Saturday November 23, 2019 @07:28AM (#21613789)

How about if you only have one arm? You can’t drive? That’s fucked up.

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Re:She Texted About Dinner While Driving. Then a Pedestrian ... by NullPrefix on Saturday November 23, 2019 @01:11PM (#21615502)

> Yeah. No phone; I’m glad about that.

I was not talking about phones. There's plethora of buttons, knobs, switches and levers in car that are non-phone related.

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Re:She Texted About Dinner While Driving. Then a Pedestrian ... by perl4ever on Friday November 22, 2019 @11:05PM (#21612403)

When I'm a passenger in a cab, I would settle for one hand on the wheel. Preferably firmly and not just resting.

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