Eating a banana at the wheel

[robing]

Did anyone see that stupid woman on breakfast TV last week who got done for peeling and eating a banana while driving? She was whingeing that she was going very slowly at the time and a warning would have sufficed. But the crux of the matter was that she had both hands off the wheel. So well done that policeman.

[NATURAL ANKLING]

Hi,
Prefer not to see this at all, if one hand is not doing the driving then it leads to taking the other hand off the wheel to do what the preening hand should be doing.

[pwa]

If I wanted to eat a banana whilst driving I would do the double hand stuff at traffic lights, or pull over. And the hand with the banana in it would still be partly controlling the steering wheel, only rising to the mouth when the road is straight and clear of complications. Still not what the Highway Code demands, but so long as my concentration is on the road I think I can do all that safely. The same applies to taking a sip out of a bottle of water.

[landsurfer]

I eat bananas often while driving and I drink juice.
Keeping myself hydrated and fed allows me to retain the levels of concentration required while driving.
I peel my bananas at traffic lights and when I'm in the services.
Neither of these actions is in any way as dangerous as ..
1. programing sat nav while driving,
2. changing music discs,
3 changing radio channels
4. mobile phones, hands free or not.
or any of the myriad of distractions modern cars provide to the driver ....
Wi-Fi in the new Astra .... really !!!

[TonyR]

If I wanted to eat a banana whilst driving I would do the double hand stuff at traffic lights, or pull over. And the hand with the banana in it would still be partly controlling the steering wheel, only rising to the mouth when the road is straight and clear of complications. Still not what the Highway Code demands, but so long as my concentration is on the road I think I can do all that safely. The same applies to taking a sip out of a bottle of water.

Its one of those occassional random things. A friend was stopped by the police many years ago for eating an apple with one hand while waiting in a traffic queue. Sometimes common sense goes out of the police window on these things but I agree that both hands off the wheel should only be when you are stopped.

[simonineaston]

I eat bananas often while driving and I drink juice.
Keeping myself hydrated and fed allows me to retain the levels of concentration required while driving.
I peel my bananas at traffic lights and when I'm in the services.
Neither of these actions is in any way as dangerous as ..
1. programing sat nav while driving,
2. changing music discs,
3 changing radio channels
4. mobile phones, hands free or not.
or any of the myriad of distractions modern cars provide to the driver ....
Wi-Fi in the new Astra .... really !!!

I: eat bananas and apples, and drink coffee/water, hunt around for and change CDs, put on and take off gloves/hats, turn the sat nav on and off and all while driving. Have done for years. The point is, like the rest of us who do likewise I expect, I pick my moments... Since I started driving in the '70s, I haven't had a single accident. That's not a boast, it's simply a matter of fact.

[kwackers]

Since I started driving in the '70s, I haven't had a single accident. That's not a boast, it's simply a matter of fact.

I'm sure you're a very safe driver but...

Accidents are a combination of poor driving and bad luck. You can be a poor driver and be lucky (just as you can be a good driver and be unlucky). Poor driving simply increases the risk it doesn't mean you will have an accident.
I've seen folk who are appalling drivers but fall back on the "I've never had an accident" claim and thus refuse to change how they drive.

As I said I'm sure you're a very safe driver after all a safe driver is definitely less likely to have one, but I'm fairly wary of folk who feel the need to use it as evidence...

[Tangled Metal]

If you need to eat and drink to retain the necessary levels of concentration for driving then I suspect you're ready for a break in driving. During this break you can eat and drink to regain your necessary levels of concentration.

I think most drivers have driven longer and further than perhaps they should have done. Using food and drink to prolong the driving time is more than a little against safe driving advice I reckon. IIRC the current advice is breaks every 2 hours on a long drive. If you need food sooner then stop sooner.

BTW my car changes radio station from the steering wheel, a lot of modern cars have that. I can concentrate on the road with both hands on the steering wheel. I'm sure eating takes a bit more attention.

[Vantage]

I don't see it as being any different from drinking from my bottle while riding.
Not in busy surroundings granted, but where the road is clear and and reasonably pedestrian/dog free then I deem it safe for a quick swig.

[Postboxer]

Also, you don't need to hold anything to change the radio station. I never really knew why they brought in the mobile phone laws, as there were already the laws in place for eating a banana at the wheel for example, they should have just released a statement publicising that they were to start cracking down on eating/drinking/smoking/holding a mobile at the wheel.

[Tangled Metal]

I think it's fair to say we have all eaten or drunk something at the wheel. Right or wrong it's still possible to get done for it. If you do get stopped for an action you had the choice to do or not to do then you can hardly moan or bleat about unfair treatment. Law allows for you to be stopped for it so if you do then your choice to put yourself into that position.

Personally I think most people break motoring laws at some point. Our own choices and actions so just live with the consequences if there are any. The woman moaning is a little pathetic IMHO. You did it, you got caught.

[simonineaston]

Since I started driving in the '70s, I haven't had a single accident. That's not a boast, it's simply a matter of fact.

I'm sure you're a very safe driver but...

Accidents are a combination of poor driving and bad luck. You can be a poor driver and be lucky (just as you can be a good driver and be unlucky). Poor driving simply increases the risk it doesn't mean you will have an accident.
I've seen folk who are appalling drivers but fall back on the "I've never had an accident" claim and thus refuse to change how they drive.

As I said I'm sure you're a very safe driver after all a safe driver is definitely less likely to have one, but I'm fairly wary of folk who feel the need to use it as evidence...

I completely agree with you. I regard my accident free status as a mix of caution, common sense and good, old-fashioned luck. Long may it remain so. I do feel sorry for the folk (and we all know at least one) who drive like saints and still get pranged. Anyway, I shall carry on doing all of the above, and choosing my moments - the trick is to get a St Christopher and hang it off the rear view mirror!

[pwa]

I don't see it as being any different from drinking from my bottle while riding.
Not in busy surroundings granted, but where the road is clear and and reasonably pedestrian/dog free then I deem it safe for a quick swig.

I also think I increase my concentration when I'm using one of my hands to do a non-driving operation, whether it is changing a radio station or lifting a water bottle to my lips. My awareness that I am doing a bit of a juggling act makes me scan the road for hazards with extra urgency. A big no-no for me is anything that will take my eyes off the road for more than a second. And any of these non-driving activities, for me, is only possible on a clear low hazard bit of road.

And whilst sharing Kwackers reservations, I do believe that a long accident-free driving record is evidence (not proof) of safe driving. It is always possible for a dodgy driver to be lucky, and mistake that luck for skill.

[robing]

I don't see it as being any different from drinking from my bottle while riding.
Not in busy surroundings granted, but where the road is clear and and reasonably pedestrian/dog free then I deem it safe for a quick swig.

Not quite the same. You do it one handed and don't need to take your eyes off the road. So as long as you don't need to suddenly brake there's no risk.

[squeaker]

I don't see it as being any different from drinking from my bottle while riding.

Except one is you + xx kg bike and the other is you + XXX kg vehicle, probably at a higher velocity