The Netherlands is leading the way in Europe when it comes to monitoring phone use in traffic, according to a new report.
The Institute for Road Safety Research (SWOV) study looked at how the ban on smartphone use among drivers and cyclists is enforced in the Netherlands and other European countries.
Researchers pointed out that distraction in traffic is one of the enforcement priorities for police in the Netherlands which made officers “adept” at focused monitoring of smartphone use by drivers and cyclists.
The report added, “Since 2019, the ban on handheld phone use has explicitly included handheld use of other mobile electronic devices. In other countries, the ban usually only refers to smartphone use (as yet), which implies that suspected offenders frequently plead that they did not hold a phone but another device altogether.”
Researchers said it was “relatively safe to conclude” that the Netherlands led the European field in camera and police enforcement targeting cyclists.
In the report, SWOV recommended existing enforcement methods of police surveillance and camera-based enforcement should be continued, along with supported communication via the media, among others. SWOV also recommended investing in new technologies such as the development of “smarter” cameras to detect violations.
