Big fines for mobile phone use

Three Pilbara motorists caught on their mobile phones while driving have become the first in the region to be hit with tough new penalties. A Karratha driver on Sunday received a $1000 fine for texting behind the wheel, while a Newman driver was also fined $1000 for using a mobile phone while driving earlier this month. Another Karratha driver was hit with a $500 fine in the first week of the new penalties being introduced. The fines came into effect on September 1 and mean drivers caught texting, emailing, watching videos or accessing social media on their phone now face a $1000 fine and four demerit points. Touching a phone to make a call while it is not mounted in a cradle attracts a $500 penalty and three demerit points. Karratha officer-in-charge Senior-Sergeant Danial Strachan hoped the new fines would act as a deterrent for drivers and make roads safer. “Making phone calls is bad enough but when you’ve actually got to use your fingers to do the texting, all your concentration is on that instead of the road,” he said. Sen. Sgt Strachan said police were always watching. “We’ve got unmarked cars,” he said. “We are sending officers out in plain clothes. “If you are going to use it (mobile phone), expect to be caught. We just won’t give cautions, you will be infringed.”