COMPLY WITH LAW

Barbadians should comply with the new law barring cellphone use whilst driving, rather than complain about it.

That is the view of David Wall, 2nd Vice President of the Barbados Road Safety Association (BRSA), who has embraced the new law and its allowance for hands-free phone use via Bluetooth devices.

During a press conference held in Salters, St. George yesterday to launch the BRSA’s new “Silent 4 Safety” Campaign, Wall noted that there are excellent Bluetooth devices which drivers can use to stay connected, without breaking the law.

“This is the Blue Ant S4. It is one of the best Bluetooth devices currently on the market, as far as I know. I have been using this particular device now since 2010. So this has been fully proven, fully tested and is one hundred per cent voice activated. So in other words, you use your voice to make calls, you use your voice to access the phonebook, you use your voice to answer calls, you use your voice to ignore calls and it is one hundred per cent hands free, so there is no touching of the device, there is no touching of the phone,” he explained.

“[Therefore] when it rings, the functionality now goes to the set, rather than the phone, so you are able to engage and it will ask you, do you want to answer the call or do you want to ignore the call. If you want to answer the call, you say answer. If you want to ignore the call, you say ignore. It also has call back features,” he explained.

“This is the type of device that the law will allow,” he stressed, adding that it not only takes voice commands, but allows for a one touch to answer or disconnect calls.

“You don’t want a case where you are using a device that you have to for instance take up the phone to find your phone contacts and then have to dial out, all that time you are looking away from the road. This allows you to keep your attention on the road,” he further stated.

Wall noted that the Bluetooth device is made to attach to the sun visor in the vehicle via magnetic clips, but it also comes with a cigarette lighter connection, along with its charging cable. He stressed that it is not the only brand on the market, but he was simply showing what is available.

“I say go with something like this, so you can remain compliant with the laws of the land. I say don’t complain, but I say comply,” he pointed out.
“The equipment is there for us to comply with the new legislative changes,” he maintained. (RSM)