Should it be illegal to eat when driving? Do you eat when driving?

Question

There was a debatte on local radio station after a lorry driver crashed thru the central reservation on monday, closing northbound m5 for 12 hours or so - all because he was eating a salami sandwhich.

just wondered if you eat/drink when driving and do you consider yourself safe while doing so?

Answer 1

I think this is a tricky issue, police state that you cannot control the car with one hand while eating, well i drive with one hand and the other tucked behind my back, I am a disabled person, I control my car as good as anybody else, yes i have the steering aid on the wheel but still it proves the car can be conrolled with one hand, so if the issue is two hands must be on the wheel like they say how do people change gear? The driver who crashed through the barrier while eating a sandwich, would have crashed for other reasons other than eating a sandwich as again the wheel of a lorry has the same driving aid on it as I have on my car so the driver must have been distracted for another reason.Lorries are driven with one hand most of the time. Its just another excuse to get us to pay more fines.

Answer 2

I do eat sometimes while driving.

Distracted drivers are the leading cause of accidents seconded only by alcohol related crashes. So you might be onto something with eating while driving... BUT

Let me ask you this... Is eating or drinking as distracing as cell phones? Is a cell phone all that more distracting than a CB Radio? How about conversations with other passengers? Adjusting your Radio/GPS/Air Conditioning? How about fooling around with a blackberry or PDA? Really THINK about that for a minute. Good grief, I have seen people trying to read a map while barreling down the expressway! Truth is, all of these things contain some element of risky behavior, but do we need more laws?

Let's take a look at the cell phone debate...

Would it be fair to say that at least 1 in 5 drivers talk on a cell phone while driving nowadays? Are there a lot of poor drivers on the road? Is it safe to say that 1 in 5 poor drivers talk on a cell phone while driving? (Do you see where I am going with this?) People see poor driving, then people see the poor driver with cell phone, so they conclude that the poor driving the fault of the phone. It's the same way with accidents when the poor driver was talking on the phone. It's really not the phone's fault anymore than the salami's sandwich's fault that the driver is a doofus!

My state has no laws banning cell phone usage or eating while driving and that will probably change someday soon. However, no amount of laws are going to remove all of the distractions that drivers face or remove "bad drivers" from the highway. To be a good driver, you have to put the priority of the road ahead of everything else. Is it possible eat a sandwich, talk on a phone, to a passenger, or to ONSTAR, while driving safely? I would actually say yes for most people. For those that can't handle it, then they need to be smart enough to limit thier own distractions without us having to pass a law about it that restricts the rest of us. If they aren't smart enough, do you really think another safety law on the books is going to make any difference?

Answer 3

I do eat in my car and drink. I can totally see why it would be and is dangerous. I see people trying to open a sandwich packet and they are swerving all over the road. I do eat crisps and things in the car but more often I drink. I have eaten sandwiches in the car, not saying it's the right thing to do but before I set off I open the packet and take it out, so all I need to do is pick it up.

I smoke in my car. I think this is more dangerous than eating by far! I only now light up when I've stopped or am going very slow. It's really dangerous as I've often been looking at my cig to see if I'm holding the flame against it, look up and I'm not where I started on the road. It's not illegal to smoke in the car though is it!

AND the amount of police I've seen eating something whilst driving is amazing!

It really doesn't affect my driving and if I do need to change gear then I put whatever I'm eating down - like a sandwich etc. However if it's a pack of crisps they just stay on my passenger seat, so no prob. Eating and drinking does not make me a bad driver or less aware or any of that but smoking does and I'm a smoker!

Answer 4

It is illegal and I have seen a lot of fixed penalty notices being handed out for exactly this reason. The part of the Road Traffic Act that the police can use is "Not having proper control of a motor vehicle". This can also apply if you take a swig from a bottle or can.

If someone crashes a vehicle due to eating or drinking they can face the charge of "Driving without due care and attention". Also there is the charges of "Dangerous driving" and "Careless driving". Depending on what else has happened the "Death by" Part can be added to either careless/dangerous driving.

The said act does not specifically say that 2 hands must be on the steering wheel as there are converted vehicles for the disabled driver solely designed to be driven one handed.
Also it would be impossible to drive a manual gear change car without breaking the law when a driver has to let go momentarily of the steering wheel in order to change gears.

Answer 5

Good question Emma...

To me the obvious answer is no it is not safe to do anything which either distracts you from driving - and in particular if it involves taking your hands of the wheel.

I was pleased to see the legislation come in regarding using a mobile whilst driving [although how many people do you see still doing this].....but it would be impossible to stop people from eating...

I guess as per usual we are all dependent on common sense from the population....is this hoping for too much?! Whilst seeming at times like a Big Brother state...rules are made for a reason and when it comes to the road, where 1000s are killed each year, then I think people are extremely foolish to ignore them. And apart from anything else it endangers other people not just yourself, both in other cars and indeed your own....which really is a trsuted responsibility.

Answer 6

Eating while driving, and drinking while driving are two different things.

I have done both, but I am more likely to drink than eat. If I eat and drive, it's something small, easy to handle, etc., and I'm eating because I don't have time to sit down and eat - I have somewhere to be. But that's pretty rare for me. I'm more likely to drink water or coffee when driving, especially when going long distances.

Outlawing eating is fine, I think, because for the most part, it's better to eat at rest than when you're driving. It usually takes more concentration to eat, and to be honest, it's distracting if you spill stuff all over your car. I guess similar things can happen when you're drinking, although such events are less likely if your car is equipped with cupholders (common in the US).

However, I usually drink coffee when driving to stay awake. Even when I have sufficient rest before a long trip, the monotonous routine of driving on the open road for hours on end is enough for just about anyone to start nodding off. If I am driving by myself, I need to have my coffee. A driver who is drinking coffee periodically is safer than one who is asleep at the wheel.

Answer 7

When you think about, it the most dangerous thing you ever do, you do as a normal event. YOU DRIVE A CAR. You do it while eating, drinking and talking on the cell phone. You even have heated discussions with friends and family. All of those things take away the attention you are giving to the potentially fatal task at hand. Eat at home. Talk on the phone at work and by all means do not drink on the road.

Answer 8

In most U. S. States it is called "Driving while distracted" and it is illegal. Other things that fall into the distracted category is, taking a drink, putting on makeup, changing the radio station, combing your hair, arranging things in the back seat, talking on a cell phone, reading a map etc.

Answer 9

No I never eat as such when driving. I might suck a sweet, but that is as much as I do. I do not drink either while driving.If I feel thirsty or dry I pull into a lay by to have some water or fruit juice.Nor do I ever use my mobile while on the move.

Answer 10

Did someone also die in that crash? I might be confusing it with another.

It should be illegal for anything that takes away a hand and concentration consistently from the wheel, but what is the point? It targets people that simply don't care I see far too many drivers still using their mobile phones.