Drivers of lorries travelling across the continent to France are being warned of a new clampdown on hauliers watching DVDs whilst driving, warn the French traffic police.
Lonely nights can be fatal for lorry drivers. Several haulers have been found to be fixated to their dashboard DVDs, instead of paying attention to the road. This has now forced police in France to increase fines for watching a movie while driving from €135 (£111) to €1,500 (£1,239) this weekend.
This measure has been taken after some lorry drivers were caught in France trying to fight against boredom with the company of Hollywood actors. Traffic police in France have also reported incidents of drivers with their feet on the dashboard.
Consequently, traffic fines have been considerably raised and police have also been given powers to confiscate DVD players. Traffic Police officers commented that the number of drivers committing this offence could be higher as only a small portion of them have been caught. Actually, haulers watching films can just be detected at night, when the screen light is visible.
Installing a DVD player in the dashboard or a portable device behind the steering wheel is considered very dangerous by police. “This offence can reduce the vigilance and the concentration of the driver and the slightest error can have serious consequences”, a French police spokesman.
There have been several detentions in Britain over this offence. For instance, a German hauler was caught last year in North Wales watching Das Boot, the 1981 film about a Second World War U-boat. In 2008, another driver from Britain was banned from driving for 15 months after being seen watching Battlestar Galactica while he drove on the M6.
