Figures obtained by Jenny Jones, a member of the London Assembly,reveal that police enforcement against drivers using mobile phones hasgone up across London, but there are still wide variations in policeactivity.
The number of fixed penalty notices issued to Redbridge drivers is oneof the lowest in London. Only 150 notices were issued in 2007/8compared to 1566 in Hounslow. The figures show that enforcement of themobile phone ban has improved in Redbridge only slightly since 2005/6when 50 notices were issued.
Jenny Jones said:
"Driving whilst using a mobile phone can be more dangerous than drinkdriving and is completely reckless behavior. I welcome the fact thatthe police in many areas of London are taking this more seriously.However, it is shocking that in the last two years some boroughs havehardly made any improvement in enforcing the mobile phone ban andsends out the wrong message that drivers can continue to get away withputting peoples lives at risk.’
‘Some boroughs are clearly taking this issue more seriously thanothers but the police must enforce this consistently across thecapital and not just in a few boroughs’