Should Smoking be Banned in Cars while in Motion?? Discussion

[ripped_fear]

I don't think they should ban it. It's bad enough that smokers got banished outside of all pubs (instead of getting their own section), let alone stopping you smoking in your own car.

I think lighting up whilst on the move is another matter though to be honest, I don't roll or light cigarettes whilst I'm moving, but smoking one isn't an issue in my opinion.

 

If they ban it, then they should also ban the following :

 

-Car Stereos

-Aftermarket Gauges (if you're worrying about your AFR's or EGT's then you're not paying attention)

-Satellite Navigation systems (or stop them responding to inputs unless stationary)

-Passengers

-Hot pedestrians in short skirts

 

just so you know sat navs not aloud to be used whilst the car is in motion

[AlexM]

I think smoking should be banned generally, filthy habit.

 

Bad drivers should be banned from the road too.

[kill1308]

just so you know sat navs not aloud to be used whilst the car is in motion

 

But the point is, that you can still use them regardless

Hence they should ban them, or stop them responding whilst on the move.

 

I don't actually agree with my points by the way, just making some examples

[kill1308]

I think smoking should be banned generally, filthy habit.

 

 

That's pretty narrow minded.

 

We all have our vices dude.... you should be free to do as you wish.

[ripped_fear]

But the point is, that you can still use them regardless

Hence they should ban them, or stop them responding whilst on the move.

 

I don't actually agree with my points by the way, just making some examples

 

fair enough if you dont agree with them, but just because you can do it doesnt make it right, you can send a txt while driving but its illegal in the same way using the sat nav is. If you stop the car thats a different matter.

[Scott]

Pretty sure the new legislation was added not so long ago, the law under which the girl with the apple got done, to cover every eventuality. If you can easily operate the car safely while having a cigarette, doing your hair, etc, etc, etc then you are fine. If for any reason you are not in control of the vehicle and it is found to be down to a self sustained distraction, ie smoking, doing your hair, etc, etc,etc then you will be done under this new legislation.

 

I can't remember any of the details around it, I can only remember thinking that it was a good idea but on the down side certain areas of the police would now use it to abuse their power.

[probrox]

I've had a cigarette blow back into the car and go down the back of my shirt while driving. Fortunately i was coming to a stop when it happened so it didn't effect my driving, but it could have caused a problem otherwise. That is the only incident in 8 years or so though, and I have had near misses alot more whilst pootling along behind someone doing 35 in a national speed limit area (my pet hate).

[probrox]

Pretty sure the new legislation was added not so long ago, the law under which the girl with the apple got done, to cover every eventuality. If you can easily operate the car safely while having a cigarette, doing your hair, etc, etc, etc then you are fine. If for any reason you are not in control of the vehicle and it is found to be down to a self sustained distraction, ie smoking, doing your hair, etc, etc,etc then you will be done under this new legislation.

 

I can't remember any of the details around it, I can only remember thinking that it was a good idea but on the down side certain areas of the police would now use it to abuse their power.

 

That is what I was trying to say earlier, that it only becomes illegal when it causes careless driving.

[AndrewOW]

I voted to ban, but I'm totally against smoking anyway. Disgusting habit.

 

Thanks for listening.

[Digsy]

But the point is, that you can still use them regardless

Hence they should ban them, or stop them responding whilst on the move.

 

If a traffic cop saw you operating your sat nav (i.e. reprogramming it) whilst on the move I'm pretty sure you would get pulled over. And yes, they do come with disclaimers saying they should not be operated while moving.

 

A car stereo is a tricky one but I would say that simply skipping to the next track, playing , pausing, etc generally doesn't require you to take your eyes off the road at all, or your hands off the wheel for more than a second (browsing for a specific track by name on your MP3 player would, however).

[Ian C]

There are two problems with cigarettes and driving, I think. The first is that, unlike perhaps eating a cheeseburger or fiddling with the stereo, there will come a time when you HAVE to do something with a cigarette no matter what else is going on, e.g. it's burning your fingers or dropping hot ash on your groin. At that point your attention primarily goes to it and away from the road and traffic.

 

The second is that smokers are addicted to them, and they don't like the idea of not being able to satisfy that addiction. So it immediately becomes an emotional argument and logic goes out of the window (along with the lit fag into the path of other road users).

 

I mean seriously, someone has already defended it by saying "yeah, it's okay, everyone can smoke while driving because I'm still fully concentrating on the road when my leg is being burned". Mmmhmmm

 

As this is the BBC, though, I have to offer other viewpoints © J Clarkson I was all over the place on the dual carraigeway last night, trying to sort out my stereo equaliser settings in the Mondeo, so that could be argued as just as bad. Except, of course, I do this once per battery recharge which shouldn't happen now for a couple of years. Smokers fumble around with lit things in their mouth at least once per trip, so statistically way more distracting

[peter richards]

I thought that pretty much everything that required you to not have both your hands free to operate the vehicle controls was already banned (i.e. eating, drinking, talking on a non-handsfree mobile). Maybe someone in the 5-0 can clarify, but I recall that this even applied when sat stationary? I recall a news item saying that someone had got charged for drinking from a water bottle while sat at traffic lights, back around the time that using mobiles whilst driving was banned.

 

I cannot believe that its not already banned.

 

This talk of "ban it if there are children in the car" is ridiculous. Yes, its a smaller space, but you could open a window and in any case if the poor kid is subjected to 40 a day at home then I doubt a few more minutes in the car wil make much difference.

 

Incidentally, if it is true that you cannot drink and drive (so to speak) I find it odd that while many new cars now have the ashtray and cigar lighter as an optional extra, they are usually full of cup holders as standard...

typical selfish reply . if the child is subjected to 40 a day in the house , dont you think whilst in the car would be a restbite from the fumes

[Ian C]

typical selfish reply . if the child is subjected to 40 a day in the house , dont you think whilst in the car would be a restbite from the fumes

 

How's that a "typical selfish reply"? I'm intrigued. Which bit is typical and selfish for our Digsy?

[Scott]

typical selfish reply . if the child is subjected to 40 a day in the house , dont you think whilst in the car would be a restbite from the fumes

 

To add, 40 a day in the house won't be anywhere near as bad as 1 in a confined space without a bedroom and access to an open window that doesn't have smoke flying out past you.

[Scott]

How's that a "typical selfish reply"? I'm intrigued. Which bit is typical and selfish for our Digsy?

 

I think he mistakenly read it as Digsy saying that's what he does and what difference does a couple of ciggys in a car make

[Chris Wilson]

Not at all, the country is going crazy with stupid, pedantic rules and regulations whilst ignoring the big issues that actually affect people generally. I am sure it's a ploy to distract people from the government failing to support the police and judiciary in tackling the real issues that are making this country sink to its knees.

[ellis]

Yes it should be banned in cars whilst driving. Anything that detracts from what you're supposed to be doing (ie. avoiding hitting other cars, people, buildings etc) should be frowned upon.

[peter richards]

3 rd paragraph first sentence, maybe i read it wrong but it looks as if hes saying that it wouldnt matter , just because of the in house abuse .

only a matter of time before it comes in

[Josh]

Ban it. I used to smoke properly (5-15 a day) and have never smoked whilst driving. Mainly 'cause I like to keep my cars clean and never felt the need for one.

 

I imagine it to be distracting though as how can you use both hands to turn with a fag in one of them, then if you hold it in your mouth, you're blinded by the smoke.

[ronttuk]

Why don't they make drivers sit in a glass box so you can not interact with passengers hear the radio get distracted by the kids in the back object don't forget no opening window so a fly don't distract you! Bloody stupid I think when will it stop !!!

[kill1308]

Not at all, the country is going crazy with stupid, pedantic rules and regulations whilst ignoring the big issues that actually affect people generally. I am sure it's a ploy to distract people from the government failing to support the police and judiciary in tackling the real issues that are making this country sink to its knees.

 

Well said.

This country is becoming less appealing to live in week by week, a lot of my friends have emigrated and I shall be following them in a few years. I thought it was just the government, but some of the people in this thread make me realise otherwise.

[j_jza80]

I've had a cigarette blow back into the car and go down the back of my shirt while driving. Fortunately i was coming to a stop when it happened so it didn't effect my driving, but it could have caused a problem otherwise. That is the only incident in 8 years or so though, and I have had near misses alot more whilst pootling along behind someone doing 35 in a national speed limit area (my pet hate).

 

 

I'm a smoker (not a heavy one, maybe 2-3 a day on average) but never smoke in cars at all, never mind while driving. It's definately a distraction, and makes the car smell horrid. Plus, you either put the cigarette out in the car which smells even worse, or throw it out the window, which is illegal and distracting for others.

[peter richards]

close the door behind you . not allowed to have an opinion now then is it

[kill1308]

close the door behind you . not allowed to have an opinion now then is it

 

If banning everything you don't agree with is an opinion... then no you're not

[Digsy]

What I'm saying is that a child subjected to a childhood of smoking parents will end up damaged from passive smoke regardless of whether or not they smoke in the car. It doesn't matter to me if they get damaged a little bit from passive smoking at home over a long period of time or a lot from one cigarette in a car in a short space of time. Why should the car be a "respite" from the fumes? That makes it sound like the poor little bugger should be thankful of the escape! I guess there are parents out there that smoke but still go to every length possible (apart from of course giving up) to protect their children from the effects of it, so if that's you and my sweeping statement offends then I'm sorry.

 

Maybe I'm coming across as selfish on this, but it amazes me the lengths smokers go to to justify a habit that regardless of what you might think affects others without their consent if you do it in public. Smoke fumes do not repsect boundaries like doors and walls (unless they happen to be in a negitively pressurised room) so saying smokers should have been given their own area in pubs rather than a ban is bonkers. I'm asthmatic. It hardly affects me now but in my early teens if I got so much as one accidental lungful of second hand cigarette smoke it would nearly kill me. Now the smell is just annoying. The day that smoking was banned and I could go out and have a drink without coming home with my clothes and hair smelling of smoke was like *ahem* a breath of fresh air.

 

I enjoy a nice curry, but I wouldn't fart in a random stranger's face afterwards.