Han Ximin

ximhan@126.com

WHISTLEBLOWERS who report drivers using mobile phones while driving will be rewarded 100 yuan (US$14.72) for each report, according to a traffic safety forum held at the Shenzhen Book City CBD Store on Saturday.

Xiang Hui, deputy chief of the legislative affairs office of the Shenzhen Municipal Traffic Police Bureau, said behaviors — such as holding mobile phones to make and answer calls while driving, swiping through WeChat or microblogs, reading text messages, playing games, and eating or smoking while driving — will be treated as violations of using mobile phones while driving.

Drivers who commit these violations will be fined 300 yuan and have two penalty points added to their licenses.

“With the growth in popularity of mobile phones, these violations also increased sharply, but the punishments don’t match the risks,” Zeng Mai, a lawmaker, said at the forum.

In addition to imposing fines, some residents suggested using other alternatives, such as suspending a driver’s license for a certain period of time if the driver is caught for several such violations.

Shenzhen reported 13 traffic accidents related to phone use violations that resulted in four deaths so far this year. Earlier in July, Shenzhen traffic police initiated actions and checked a total of 22,169 such violations.

Feng Xinyi, deputy chief of Shenzhen’s traffic police bureau, said that punishment is not the aim, and that he hopes the tightened checks will be helpful in regulating the habits of drivers and helping drivers become more aware of how the habits jeopardize the safety of driving.