28,000 ‘mobile’ motorists get a ticket from Mumbai traffic department

Over 28,000 people in the city were penalised for using their mobile phones while driving in the first three months of 2018, reveals data shared by the traffic police department.

According to the data, 28,262 motorists were penalised between January to March this year for using their phone while driving. The figure is alarming especially in the backdrop of a recent IIT-B study which found that it took 40 per cent more time for motorists talking on the phone while driving to react to a pedestrian crossing as opposed to an alert driver. The study was conducted by Nagendra R Velaga, associate professor at IIT-B, along with his co-author Pushpa Choudhary.

Joint commissioner of Mumbai police (traffic), Amitesh Kumar, said that the use of phones while driving is among the most prominent violations of the Motor Vehicles Act, which is followed by other violations like driving without a helmet and driving under the influence of alcohol.

"The traffic police has been taking strict action against motorists who are found using their phones while they drive and will continue to do so even in the days to come. This violation has been a major concern for us to avoid accidents on the city's roads," added Kumar. "Any use of one's mobile phone while driving — be it talking or texting — is punishable and we have been fining people who are found doing it," he added.

In 2017, a total of 1,39,335 were caught using their mobile phones while driving and were penalised for the same. Section 177 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988, prescribes a fine between Rs 100 and Rs 300 for using a mobile phone while driving. If such an action causes inconvenience or poses a hazard to pedestrians and other motorists, the fine is Rs 1,000 and the compounding fee is Rs 500.

DISTRACTED DRIVER

• A recent study found that a driver on the phone took 40% more time than an alert driver to respond to a pedestrian while a driver who was texting took 204% more time.