The new crackdown on motorists who use mobile phones while driving has elicited debate among motorists with many saying that hands-free devices such as Bluetooth and earphones shouldn’t be put in the same category as hands-on usage of mobile phones while driving.

The operation, which was launched last Thursday, follows various "serious accident reports” largely caused by use of mobile phones while driving, speeding, reckless maneuvers, mechanical faults and failure to respect right of way especially for pedestrians, according to Police.

Commissioner of Police in charge of Traffic and Road Safety, CP Rafiki Mujiji, said: "We are very strict on the issues of using mobile phones while driving, even hands-free devices such as Bluetooth and earphones obstruct a driver and are prohibited. Just avoid using a phone in any way while driving”.

However, according to some motorists, it is "understandable” for a traffic police officer to punish a motorist talking on phone but hands-free gadgets are not a distraction and hence should not elicit fines.

Ines Buki, responded to Mujiji’s comment in a twitter post saying: "I agree with talking on the phone but hands free are made for that purpose and new cars model have that facility.

Davis Nteziryaro, a Rwandan who lived in the U.S for over a decade thinks that hand-free gadgets were actually made to facilitate drivers and avoid holding phones while driving and hence it doesn’t make sense when they are banned.

"This new directive is a bit tricky. I lived in the U.S and I have travelled to various countries where hand-free devices are allowed for drivers. I don’t find them a distraction in any way unless when one is over speeding. May be the issue is in this case is over speeding which should be discouraged and not hands-free devices” Nteziryayo said.

Wafula David Wanjala, on the other hand is of the view that: "Anything that would contribute 1 percent of a distraction to a driver is worth being restricted for the safety of our roads.

"It is very easy for the call—and not the device you have used—to divert the driver’s attention. Bluetooth devices might not be as dangerous as one holding the phone while driving but we need to reduce risks. Increasing punishments, to me, is a good move.” Wafula said.

Traffic Police launched countrywide operations against reckless driving, violation of traffic rules and regulations on February 8. And some reports indicate that within one hour, 45 drivers had been fined only in Kigali.

According to the Traffic Spokesperson, Jean Marie Vianney Ndushabandi, the operation was launched after the department had established that cases of road accidents in public transport had reduced significantly but not as much compared to private motorists.

Ndushabandi told Sunday Times that the use of Speed Governors in public service vehicles has reduced accidents in public transport by 65 per cent but the "slow reduction” was recorded in privately owned vehicles.

"Earpieces and Bluetooth are still a distraction and studies have shown that they can still cause accidents and we don’t want that,” Ndushabandi said in an interview.

"All we ask drivers is to just stop speaking on the phone because calls will somehow distract the driver’s attention. It is important we all become responsible drivers and citizens for that matter,” He added.

There are also reports that traffic penalties especially motorists using a phone while driving might be increased tenfold from the current Rwf10, 000.

However, CP Mujiji said that the proposal of increased fine is among proposed new traffic regulations and is yet to be passed into law—a position which was clarified by Ndushabandi.

According to Ndushabandi, the current law provides that punitive penalties for traffic offenders ranges between Rwf10,000 to Rwf150,000 depending on the specificity of the offense.

"We seek to harmonize penalties for speaking on phone, and other offences in the revised law related to road traffic. But it is still a draft that is being discussed,” Ndushabandi said.

He also said that the offenders who would be found guilty during the ongoing operations will not be charged Rwf100,000 as speculated.  At least not until the new law on traffic regulations has been passed, Ndushabandi said.

Denyz Umulisa says that, the proposed fines, "are okay because we have failed to be responsible drivers.

However, she added that, fining the use of hands-free sets is "a bit over board’ because there are situations where you have to pick important calls and you can’t be pulling off on the side every now and then,”

Research published in 2016 at the University of Sussex in England shows that driving while talking on a hands-free phone can be as distracting as talking on a hand-held mobile phone.

The Study titled "Imagery-inducing distraction leads to cognitive tunneling and deteriorated driving performance,” showed that there is a popular misconception that using a mobile phone while driving is safe as long as the driver uses a hands-free phone, which is not actually as right at it seems.

editorial@newtimes.co.rw