Inattentive drivers on police radar.

Queensland police minister Jack Dempsey has blamed inattentive drivers for causing road crashes which has prompted police to target this type of behaviour over the holiday season.

According to the minister these are the main contributing factors to accidents on Queensland’s roads:

• Speeding
• Drink driving
• Not Wearing a Seatbelt
• Fatigued driving
• Inattentive Driving

Driving is a complex task and drivers need to be fully alert when engaging in it, this cannot be done when workers are distracted by mobile phones, their sound systems and DVD players as well as the navigation systems. Even taking their eyes off the road for one second could be enough to cause a crash.
When people are more engaged by activities such as texting, talking or become distracted by children in the back seat etc. it is harder for drivers to avoid accidents, notice changes in the road, adhere to speed limits and traffic signals etc. when they are inattentive or distracted.
Read this post from Fullyloaded.com that highlights the Police Minister’s View:

• Inattentive motorists in Queensland will face police scrutiny over the holiday period, after the state’s police minister blamed driver distraction for contributing to road accidents.
• Police Minister Jack Dempsey says the ‘fatal four’ causes of accidents police usually focus on will be expanded to the ‘fatal five’ to include inattention.
• Speeding, drink driving, not wearing a seatbelt and driving while fatigued make up the rest of the ‘fatal five’.
• “Too many Queensland drivers are being distracted while on the road by things like using a mobile phone, complex sound systems, on-board DVD and satellite navigation,” Dempsey says.
• “Between January 1, 2010 and July 31, 2012 more than 96,000 driver distraction offences were recorded in Queensland.”
• Police Commissioner Ian Stewart says officers will be out in force over the Christmas holiday period.
• “Over this period, police will be deployed across the state and will use covert and marked mobile speed cameras, marked and unmarked police patrols, fixed speed cameras, hand-held speed detection devices and the automatic number plate recognition system,” he says.

Source: https://www.fullyloaded.com.au/industry-news/articleid/82106.aspx

These are some of the greatest distractions that drivers are engaged in that jeopardise road safety.

• Eating and Drinking while driving: Driving not only requires your full attention but both your hands. Eating and drinking especially when you spill causes you to become distracted. Truckies should use rest stops to eat big meals, don’t try to save time by eating while driving.
• Grooming or Applying Make-up: Taking your eyes off the road to look in the mirror for even a second can be disastrous especially if you don’t notice what’s going on up ahead such as traffic stopping.
• Children or Pets: Tending to your kids or pets in the back seat is extremely dangerous because it forces you to turn around. Don’t do it. Over 96000 accidents have been caused over the last 2 years because of inattentive drivers.
• Fiddling with Electronic Devices: This has become a huge issue recently with the prevalence of GPS systems and smart phones with maps. Programme your GPS before beginning your journey.
• Watching what happens on the road side: Don’t become distracted by other accidents, bill boards, break downs on the side of the road. This phenomenon (also known as rubber necking) not only slows traffic but can cause an accident.
• Texting and Talking on Your Mobile: This is so dangerous and illegal yet it is still such a problem.
• Daydreaming: Strange but true, a lot of people daydream, plan their day, think of what they need to do at the office or when they get home etc. which means their full attention is taken off the road which can be a recipe for disaster on the road.