CityCyclingEdinburgh was launched on the 27th of October 2009 as "an experiment".
IT’S TRUE!
CCE is 15years old!
Well done to ALL posters
It soon became useful and entertaining. There are regular posters, people who add useful info occasionally and plenty more who drop by to watch. That's fine. If you want to add news/comments it's easy to register and become a member.
RULES No personal insults. No swearing.
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THE number of drivers caught using a mobile phone at the wheel has soared to 14 a day in the Lothians, figures revealed today, while other motoring offences such as drink-driving are on the decline.
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http://edinburghnews.scotsman.com/topstories/Police-stop-14-drivers-a.6819601.jp
Should be out catching murderers, rapists, arsonists, teenagers, illegal immigrants, cyclists jumping red lights etc.
Only 14?!?
You forgot looters, bankers, politicians and pavement pedallers.
Only 14?!?
Can't catch 'em all - which is why people do it.
The comments are a joy as ever...
"Well, if using a phone and driving is as dangerous as they say it is, that surely would result in a huge spate of crashes. Clearly it does not, which goes to prove that all this is a storm in a teacup.
Let's face it, if you can't use a mobile and drive at the same time then you shouldn't be on the road. And if it does affect your driving then the law about driving without due care and attention covers it. We do not need a stupid, mindless, risk-averse, nanny state law forbidding the use of mobiles at the wheel."
Yep, Alternative Fuel-Head is really going for it today!
"I'm sick to death of "horror story" "road safety" films like this, in the same way that I'm sick to death of gory pictures on tobacco packets. They are played up for dramatic effect and in reality bear not relationship whatsoever to the reality of the situation.
Making mobile phone calls at the wheel, and even texting at the wheel is perfectly safe PROVIDED you think about what you are doing and do not allow your conentration on driving to drop away. If you fail to do that then you are open to a charge of drivnig without due care and attention---which should be the ONLY offence you can be charged with in relation to a mobile phone.
It's about time that the nannies gave us credit for having our own intelligence, backed off and consigned their stupid laws to the bin."
The Risk of Using a Mobile Phone While Driving
http://www.rospa.com/roadsafety/info/mobile_phone_report.pdf
"On the other hand there is NO scientific evidence that suggests mobile phone use when driving results in a reduced ability, let alone a danger. Of course it is possible to use a mobile phone in such a way that one's drivnig becomes dangerous... in the same way that it is possible to have a row with your wife in such a way that you driving becomes dangerous."
"...and do not allow your conentration [sic] on driving to drop away..."
No swearing. No personal insults.
That's like trying to catch yourself falling asleep. It's hard to notice your concentration drifting as you're distracted by whatever it's drifted to.
He is a man who likes to make his attitude to other road users, the standards of his knowledge and research and indeed his apparent intelligence level, clear in almost every post.
There, does that say what I mean without swearing or making a personal insult? ;-)
"does that say what I mean without swearing or making a personal insult?"
I think the PI rule only applies when it's about people on this forum.
But we could have a poll.
Didn't WFB imply that one of his posts was modded after he used an unkind morphological description of a wireless broadcasting personality?
I didn't understand a word of that last comment.
This is genius:
Fuel Head
"... there is NO scientific evidence that suggests mobile phone use when driving results in a reduced ability, let alone a danger."
ScientistByDay
"You missed these (and about 89,000 other) examples of scientific evidence:
Strayer DL, Drewes FA (2007). Cell-Phone-Induced Driver Distraction
Current Directions in Psychological Science 16: 128-131
Rakauskus, Gugerty, Ward (2004). Effects of naturalistic cell phone conversations on driving performance. Journal of Safety Research, Volume 35, Issue 4, 2004, 453-464.
Dula, Martin, Fox, Leonard (2010). Differing types of cellular phone conversations and dangerous driving. Accident Analysis & Prevention, Volume 43, Issue 1, 187-193."
Fuel Head
"That isn't evidence. It's waffle."
ScientistByDay
"Did you bother to actually look at any of the papers I cited? Or maybe follow up your own question with a little of your own research and analysis?
Your imagination might not be the best place to seek scientific evidence. But you don't seem to recognise it even when the work of finding it is done for you. You're seeking facts to fit your conclusions, and failing even at that."
Fuel Head
"I'm not going to waste my time reading rubbish. The papers you cite are in exactly in the same league as all the drivel that is written about global warming, climate change and passive smoking. I've seen those kinds of papers before and I used to bother reading them until I discovered that essentially none of them are correct scientifically."
Hahahahahahahahahahaha!
Well the results of the poll are interesting...
Cripes, it is isn't it!
"I'm not going to waste my time reading rubbish. The papers you cite are in exactly in the same league as all the drivel that is written about global warming, climate change and passive smoking. I've seen those kinds of papers before and I used to bother reading them until I discovered that essentially none of them are correct scientifically."
Although I love the hilarity of people who are this ignorant/self deceived, at the same time it makes me immensely sad to think that they are out there (and probably more common than we fear).
That particular exchange has been given a page in the next citycycling...
The global warming, climate change and passive smoking bit almost makes it look like it's someone who knows better deliberately trolling using a Clarksonic persona, except that someone who knows better would know that 'global warming' is no longer used as it lets dunderheads feel all smug when it snows in winter.
" it makes me immensely sad to think that they are out there (and probably more common than we fear)"
There are also some in 'influential' positions with the ability to hold up opinion change.
This has been noticably true with the BBC and 'balance' - notably on Climate Change - where discussions 'had' to have people from 'both sides' even when 'scientific opinion' had shifted so much that the only CC deniers are people like Lord Lawson (non-scientist).
Of course now that 'everyone agrees', all that the mainstream politicians want is a way to 'kickstart growth'.
In Scotland of course we have a minister for sustainable growth and Mr. Swinney's current desire is for a reduction in Corporation Tax.
Today the UK Government has announced a new set of Enterprise Zones (England only I think).
I thought one was already the centre of the Cornish surfing industry. Another was a pleasant Market Town last time I was there (many years ago), which was coming to terms with losing its shoe industry.
It seems clear to me that 'business as usual' or 'business as we once think it might have been and could be again if only we can find the right formula' isn't necessarily the way forward.
It's not about being 'anti-business'. It's much more complicated than that.
For instance - are supermarkets a good thing? Yes and no.
Have they created jobs? Yes.
Have they created more jobs than a myriad of small shops? Don't know.
Have they 'changed the face of the high street'? Yes.
Have they changed the way agriculture is done in many parts of the world? Yes.
Have they caused more big lorries to be on the road? Probably.
Have they caused more people to 'need' cars? Probably.
Have they had an impact on land use and planning? Yes.
Have they made food cheaper for ordinary people? Probably.
Are these things good/bad/inevitable?
Sorry 'classic' OT.
There's a sub-section of the marketing / public relations industry that specialises in generating comments on forums and newspaper comments. See, for instance, APCO Worldwide. I'm not saying that Fuel Head is part of an organised campaign but the writing seems too articulate to be coming out with such obvious stupidities. Definitely a troll.
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Driver spotted using two mobile phones is banned
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Completely forgot to mention Friday night, virtually home, aking the last right hand turn off the main road. I'd had a Saab sitting a bit too close behind, clearly thinking about overtaking, but a bit wary of the cars parked on either side of the road and traffic coming in the opposite direction. I guess I should feel lucky he was paying attention, because...
Lights ahead were red, I roll into the right hand side of the ASL, indicating right for that is the way I was travelling. He rolls into the ASL on the left. Completely, fully, into the ASL. Look down. And he's texting. He quickly hides the phone, I continue staring, he looks up then quickly down again. Then checks his phone again.
If it's that important by god it's not difficult to pull over to check your messages and let your other half know that, yes, you'd quite like peas for dinner.
Maybe regulation of car manufacturing is the answer to this plague of careless driving. Simply require all cars to be built incorporating a Faraday cage into the bodywork. Then drivers would either have to hold the phone out of the window (highly dangerous and asking to get caught) or pull over and get out of the car to use the phone... It might mess up GPS receivers but that might not be a bad thing.
It won't happen of course.
Overtook a woman on the M9 last week who was brushing her teeth at the wheel. Not sure what she did for spitting out...
.."all cars to be built incorporating a Faraday cage into the bodywork"
Since the wavelength of a 3g phone signal is ~150mm and any gaps in the metalwork would have to be significantly less than that (~6mm would be good), cars incorporating a cage effective for mobiles might be hard to see out of.
Try looking through the door of a microwave oven (same frequency range) to get the effect.
Some kind of conductive coating might work, but I doubt it. I got a 2 bar signal in a lift (complete metal box, no windows) the other day.
Time to invent transparent aluminium for car windows, perhaps? :))
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