Using a mobile phone while cycling is to be banned in the Netherlands amid mounting safety fears in a country where bikes outnumber people.

A draft law scheduled to take effect next July will extend an existing 2002 ban on car and lorry drivers using their mobile phones at the wheel unless in hands-free mode to “the use of a mobile electronic device while driving any vehicle (including a bicycle).”

The Dutch transport minister, Cora van Nieuwenhuizen, said the law was necessary because the advent of social media and unlimited mobile data had changed how people used smartphones and the time they spent on them.

Cyclists were excluded from the initial ban because of their lower speeds, van Niewenhuizen said. “But in fact, using a phone is just as dangerous on a bike as it is in a car,” she said. “The fact is that whenever you’re on the road you should be paying full attention and not doing anything at all on a phone.”

The increasing popularity of electric bikes meant cyclists’ average speed had risen, the minister added, while the country’s 35,200 kilometers of cycle lanes and paths had become more crowded.

The Netherlands has more bikes — about 22.5 million — than people: 17 million. Almost a quarter of the population cycles every day and cycle use has increased by about 12 percent since 2005; the average Dutch cyclist now covers more than 960 kilometers a year in 250-300 trips.

Pedestrians, too, are at risk when they use mobile phones near cyclists: the Dutch town of Bodegraven last year launched a trial of foot-level traffic lights to prevent people wandering on to roads or cycle lanes while glued to their screens.

While research suggests the number of cyclists who need emergency care after an accident involving a mobile phone may not be particularly high, less serious accidents have become increasingly common, particularly among young people.

One in five bike accidents involving people aged 12 to 25 last year involved a smartphone, according to one estimate.

Words to Learn 相关词汇

【上升的】shàngshēng de mounting increasing in amount or extent

【估算】gūsuàn estimate a rough or approximate calculation

荷兰的自行车比人还多，令人们对安全隐患的担忧渐增，于是荷兰发布禁令，禁止骑车时用手机。

2002年荷兰出台法律，禁止汽车和卡车司机开车时用手机（使用耳机或蓝牙等免提模式除外），将于明年7月生效的新规在此基础上将禁令修改为禁止“在驾驶任何车辆（包括自行车）时用移动电子设备”。

荷兰交通部长科拉●凡●钮文惠真说，随着社交媒体的出现，铺天盖地的移动端信息已经改变了人们使用智能手机的方式和花在手机上的时间，因此实施这一法律很有必要。

凡●钮文惠真表示，最初的禁令不包括骑车，是因为骑车速度相对较慢。她说：“但事实上，骑车用手机就和开车用手机一样危险。无论何时，只要你在马路上，都应该集中注意力，而不要用手机做任何事。”

这位部长还说，电动自行车的日益普及意味着骑车的平均速度提上去了，同时，荷兰长达35200公里的自行车道和人行道也变得愈发拥挤。

荷兰的自行车（2250万辆）比人

（1700万）还多。近四分之一人口每天都要骑车，自2005年以来，自行车使用量增加了约12%；荷兰骑车者每年平均出行250到300次，里程超960公里。

行人在骑车人附近使用手机时，自身安全也会有风险。荷兰小镇博德赫拉芬去年开始试用地面交通灯，防止人们在盯着手机时不小心走到马路或自行车道上。

尽管调查显示，因使用手机而需要紧急送医的严重事故骑车人也许不是特别多，但因此发生的轻微事故日益常见，年轻的骑车人当中尤其高发。

根据估算，去年12岁到25岁的人发生的自行车事故有五分之一跟使用智能手机有关。

(Chinadaily.com.cn)