The number of motorists caught using a handheld mobile phone while driving has halved in the year since harsher penalties came into force.
Around 39,000 fixed penalty notices聽were issued to drivers between March and December last year compared with 74,000 during the same period in 2016, according to police data.
On 1st March 2017, the penalties doubled from 拢100 and聽three penalty points to 拢200 and聽six points.
To coincide with the first anniversary of the new penalties, THINK! is highlighting the chances of being caught in adverts, which will appear on radio, social media, on demand video and in shopping centres, as part of its ongoing campaign to raise awareness of the dangers.
Road Safety Minister Jesse Norman said: 鈥淭he penalties for holding and using a聽mobile phone while driving have proven to be a strong deterrent, and more and more people are aware of just how dangerous this is.
鈥淏ut some motorists are still not only putting their own lives at risk, but the lives of others.
鈥淓veryone has a role to play to encourage drivers to put their phone away and not use it while at the wheel.鈥�
A further 1,997 motorists were handed fines as part of a national crackdown by traffic officers between 22nd and 28th January 2018, which was choreographed by the National Police Chiefs鈥� Council. Of those caught, 74% were male.
National lead for roads policing, chief constable Anthony Bangham, said: 鈥淚n the year since the new legislation was introduced, we have started to see changes in driver behaviour as the public begin to understand the impact that driving whilst using a mobile phone can have.
鈥淗owever, there are still far too many people underestimating the risk that they take when using their mobile phone at the wheel.
鈥淲e used intelligence to identify hotspots and repeat offences to stop over 3000 drivers in one week. 66.5% of which were committing a mobile phone related offence.
鈥淚t is not just about the penalty points or the fine, it is about putting safety first and keeping your eyes on the road so you don鈥檛 risk hurting or killing an innocent person.鈥�
RAC road safety spokesman Pete Williams said: 鈥淒rivers tell us that their top聽motoring concern is seeing other people using a handheld mobile phone at the wheel.
鈥淭he introduction of tougher penalties sent a strong signal to offenders and we hope that this, combined with targeted enforcement of the law by police and impactful campaigns from the likes of THINK! and Be Phone Smart, is beginning to encourage a shift in driver behaviour.
鈥淩egardless of the efforts by government, the police and road safety campaigners, the decision to pick up a handheld phone 鈥� or leave it alone 鈥� while driving remains a personal choice that each driver makes.
“While the temptation may be strong, drivers need to really ask themselves what is so important that they must risk their life, and the lives of others, by using a handheld mobile phone at the wheel.
鈥淲e encourage all drivers to think about the role their phone plays in the car while they should be focused on driving 鈥� and then make a personal promise to stay safe and legal by visiting BePhoneSmart.uk.鈥�
After last March鈥檚 THINK! campaign, 9 in 10 people were aware of the new penalties. The adverts were seen by around 29 million people and social media content was seen by a further 12 million people.
Last October鈥檚 Pink Kitten video, which highlighted how much you miss if you glance at your phone while driving, reached an audience of about 21 million people.