Hunter motorists warned over driving while using a mobile phone

Three fatalities in the region over a four-year period were linked to drivers using a mobile phone.

NSW Roads Minister Duncan Gay said using a mobile phone to call or text while driving was “extremely dangerous”.

“It’s just plain reckless for you, your passengers and everyone else on the road,” Mr Gay said.

“No tweet, selfie, Facebook friend request or SMS is more important than concentrating on the road and protecting your life or someone else’s.”

The figures show police issued more than 14,000 fines in the Hunter since 2011-12 for driving while using a mobile phone.

While the number of offences had fallen steadily since then, authorities were concerned the infraction had become harder to detect.

This was because people had become more likely to be texting while driving, than speaking on the phone.

Lake Macquarie Highway Patrol Sergeant Richard Coxon said police considered mobile phone use while driving to be a reason for many crashes caused by inattention.

Sergeant Coxon urged people not to touch mobile phones while driving, saying they should be kept in the boot or a bag.

“If you don’t have it where you can reach it, you’re less likely to be distracted by it,” he said.

Young drivers were a particular concern.

The latest crash data from the Centre for Road Safety showed that from 2010 to 2014 there were 236 recorded crashes on NSW roads, in which “hand-held mobile phone use by drivers was a contributing factor”.

This included seven fatalities and 116 crashes that caused injury.

In the Hunter Region over this period, there were 43 recorded crashes linked to drivers being distracted by mobile phones.

This included three fatalities and 22 crashes that caused injury, a centre spokeswoman said.

“These crash numbers are considered to be under-reported because of the difficulty of finding evidence of illegal mobile phone use at crash scenes,” she said.