On the Gulf News Facebook Page, we asked our readers if they had any innovative ideas to curb distracted driving.
Facebook user Ajay Thombre posted: “Wear hand gloves while driving”.
Tabassum Farheen suggests drivers to assign car accident tones to incoming messages, “Car accident ringtones, every time they receive a message ...”
Fatima Suhail suggests: “Every driver should tape or bandage their thumb or cover it while driving, so that it reminds them that they should not be using it will driving.”
Dilip Shahani wrote: “Keep (the phone) on the back seat and on silent.”
Many others thought technologically advanced systems like speech-to-text is the safest idea for those who really need to text while driving.
Anil Kumar Singh wrote: “Use voice sms or speech to text programme.”
Facebook users, Imran Imy and Don Joy Thottungal agree with this idea.
Armaghan Umer also stressed on use of driver support functions in phones. “Speech to text may solve this problem, or just use hands-free for talking while driving,” he says.
Others suggested introduction of internet and signal jammers in cars, that would prohibit any messages from being sent while the car was in motion.
Sumoj Gopinath Kurup wrote: “Keep a sensor in the car that could sense the texting and then a voice screams out loudly: ‘YOU COULD DIE!’”
Facebook users Shakil Narmawala, Muhammad Ahmad and Shaheryar Khan Ghouri were some of the readers who were in favour of installing mobile jammers in cars.
Facebook user Md Ayaz Ahmed commented: “Telecommunication companies should introduce drive mode like the airplane mode that already exists. If you keep your moble on drive mode, when a message or call arrives a default message should automatically be sent to the other person stating, ‘the person you are trying to reach is currently driving’.”
Nida Zack commented: “Simply block the use of mobile phones in every car, once you start the engine the signal for the mobile phone should be blocked. No calling, no receiving or sending text messages ... road gets safer for one and for all.”
Gary Taylor wrote: “Fit cars with scramble devices, similar to quiet carriages on UK trains. Once the car is in motion, no messages will be received.”
Mohamed Iksan had a solution for automatic cars. He wrote: “There must be a system in the car that requires the driver to place both hands on the steering wheel while driving above 80 kilometres per hour. If one hand is removed, the speed would be reduced or alarms would go off.”
MarkDennis Trinio suggested creation of apps that use GPS to identify phones in moving vehicles and “remind drivers, or even prohibit them from texting while driving.”
Sandra Jane Peters added: “Most people have beautiful cars in the UAE and it must be a pleasure just to drive and see the beauty around them. Switch the phone off and lock it out of sight. It can wait.”
