Idiot’s station wagon
Phone hooked up to watch TV while driving
YOU’VE heard of a drive-in theatre, but watching a screen while driving?
This Gold Coast motorist and his passenger were caught by the Bulletin watching a show in built-up traffic on Tuesday night.
The driver had attached a mobile phone to the windscreen to create a car theatre to watch the show while in heavy traffic, from Marine Pde all the way along the Smith St motor- way. The driver shifted the phone for a better view of the screen several times.
Senior Sergeant Bradyn Murphy, officer in charge of the Gold Coast Road Policing Unit, said a motorist could be fined $168 and lose three points for watching a screen while driving.
“At the end of the day you’re driving without due care and attention. There’s no way you could argue you are driving with care and attention while you’re watching the latest episode of The Bachelor or whatever it was,” Sen-Sgt Murphy said.
“You’re not going to crash into anybody in your loungeroom, so that’s where all movies should be watched. Very slim chance of running over or killing someone in your loungeroom.”
He said police saw some strange things on the road.
“Normally it’s eating the breakfast on the way to work, or reading the paper,’’ he said.
“Our cars are now, virtually, an extension of our homes. You’ve got all these things you can do in a car, bar making you a cup of coffee. People just get complacent.
“We jump in, we’ve got all these mod cons, sitting in these virtually airconditioned loungerooms, and in this case able to watch a movie, when we should be paying attention to the road and what’s around us.”
Sen-Sgt Murphy said it was illegal to have any sort of display that could impede vision.
“It’s illegal to have a visual display unit where a driver can see it and that includes a DVD, movie or whatever. The only thing that is allowed to be in your eyesight is a GPS or phone holder … down the bottom right hand corner of your windscreen.”