Reporting by the public
With diminishing resources an issue for most police forces , the public may be a valuable ally in deterring and reporting mobile phone use by drivers .
Evidence suggests that road users are overwhelmingly opposed to mobile phone use - 38 % claim it is one of their top 4 motoring concerns ¹ - and want action taken . However , significant numbers of people still do it ¹, and it is likely that many do so because they believe they won ’ t get caught ². The spread of dash cams , helmet cams and phone cameras is increasing the likelihood that evidence of driving offences will actually exist and - if that footage can be made available to the police - meaningful action may be taken .
The evidence
When it comes to crime , we often consider the offender and the victim , but we can also talk about ‘ capable guardians ’ - those individuals ( or technologies ) present at that time who have the opportunity to disrupt or ‘ do something ’ about that offence ³. The idea that there are three elements in any crime event has a long history in criminology and lies behind a lot of the Situational Crime Prevention approaches that have been popular in recent decades . According to this approach , crimes occur when a motivated offender is present , a suitable target is present , and a capable guardian is absent .
capable guardianship . Whilst CCTV and speed cameras may be criticised for their potential to displace offending to areas that are not covered by cameras , with this approach every road user becomes a potential source of meaningful surveillance and the potential offender has no way of knowing when their behaviour is being monitored . It is likely to be effective in deterring a variety of dangerous driver behaviour IF systems are in place that turn third party footage into tangible criminal justice outcomes .
This surveillance is not being imposed in a ‘ top down ’ fashion , but driven by ‘ bottom up ’ demand , so is also evidence of public endorsement of roads policing objectives - something that has been hard to demonstrate in recent years .
Capable guardians on the road do not have to be police officers . For example , speed cameras have been used to deter , or detect , speeding offences with no need for a police presence . With reduced police resources , public reporting capabilities offer the potential of
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¹ RAC ( 2018 ). RAC Report on Motoring 2018 . Available from : https :// www . rac . co . uk / pdfs / report-on-motoring / rac10483 _ rom-2018 _ content _ web ² The AA . ( 2018 ). What ’ s the chance of being caught for a driving offence ? News report . Available from : https :// www . theaa . com / about-us / newsroom / drivingoffence-enforcement . ³ Branic , N ., 2015 . Routine activities theory . The encyclopedia of crime and punishment , pp . 1-3 .; Reynald , D . M ., 2010 . Guardians on guardianship : Factors affecting the willingness to supervise , the ability to detect potential offenders , and the willingness to intervene . Journal of Research in Crime and Delinquency , 47 ( 3 ), pp . 358-390 .