In Vancouver, Cops Pull Over Driver with iPhone, Tablet Fastened to Steering Wheel

Talk about distracted driving.

In Vancouver, the local police’s traffic unit pulled over a male driver after spotting that he was wearing headphones while cruising on Cambie Street located in Downtown of Vancouver. When the traffic officer approached the car, he noticed an iPhone and Samsung tablet affixed to the car’s steering wheel.

The Lexus driver presumably affixed the two mobile devices so that he can still use both hands to operate the vehicle, which was a manual.

Despite the discovery, police did not issue the driver a distracted driving ticket. Instead, the officer chose to warn the driver about the dangers of distracted driving.

In Vancouver, a distracted driving citation comes with a fine of Can$368 (over P14,000).

The Vancouver Police Department shared the incident in a Twitter post with the following caption: “Can’t make it up. Guy had iPad and cell phone attached by strings on steering wheel while driving! Yes, that’s his ticket he’s holding.”

Can’t make it up. Guy had iPad and cell phone attached by strings on steering wheel while driving! Yes, that’s his ticket he’s holding. pic.twitter.com/h5WoA2ac87

— @VPDTraffic (@VPDTrafficUnit) November 15, 2017

The driver didn’t get off easy though, because he still committed another violation. The officer issued him a Can$81 (over P3,000) fine after failing to produce a driver’s license.

“Just when I think I’ve seen everything, a photo like this is captured by one of our officers,” Vancouver Police spokesman Const. Jason Doucette said in an interview. “We are reminding drivers to leave their devices alone while behind the wheel. And although our officer felt education was appropriate in this incident.”

When asked why the driver didn’t get a ticket for distracted driving, Doucette said the ticketing officers decided that educating the driver about the hazards of using the devices while behind the wheel would be a more effective approach in convincing him to abandon the practice altogether.

Locally, our very own Republic Act 10913 or the Anti-Distracted Driving Act, which took effect last May 18, explicitly states that no communication or electronic gadget should be affixed on the car’s steering wheel and dashboard. In addition, drivers are only allowed to wear earphones when making or receiving calls, and not when listening to music.