One night last week I had to walk along the 2nd Circular, in Lisbon. A routine and uneventful situation – despite there being some traffic. The trip was peaceful until a certain moment when a car that was traveling a little ahead started to move in a zigzag between the lanes. When the situation normalized it was possible to overcome it and understand what was happening.
And the discovery was, more or less, surprising: the driver was watching a video on his cell phone placed on a support attached to the dashboard, while traveling along one of the most used roads in Lisbon, right at that time. What can you say about an attitude like this? Irresponsible? Or worse?
At a time when there are numerous warnings about the dangers of driving and using a cell phone, with several inspection actions by both the Public Security Police and the National Republican Guard, with the support of the National Road Safety Authority, there are still people who are really “playing with luck”.
On Monday, after the situation I witnessed, the PSP released data on its actions related to phone use while driving over the past year. And the result is enlightening: 6026 infractions, an increase of 952 compared to 2024. In other words, 17 per day.
The message given to drivers could not be clearer: “Using a cell phone while driving increases the risk of an accident by four times” or “using a cell phone while driving causes an increase in reaction time to unforeseen situations greater than the effect of a blood alcohol level of 0.8 g/l”.
If we combine the statistics from 2023 to 2025, according to the PSP, we learn that there were 12,215 accidents in which it was proven that distracted driving – which includes the use of a cell phone – was the cause.
The truth is that, based on known data, fines between 250 and 1250 euros, the loss of three points on the National Driving License (CNH) and a ban on driving for between one and 12 months are not enough of a deterrent. Neither do the mottos of the campaigns, like the one that ended at the beginning of the week: “Connect with life – not with your cell phone”.
The issue of using phones while driving is extremely important and should deserve even more attention. This is in a country where, according to ANSR data from January to September 2025, on the Continent and in the Autonomous Regions, 28,975 accidents with victims were recorded, 337 fatalities, 2161 serious injuries and 33,976 less serious injuries.
This is a debate that needs to be stronger. After all, we are not just referring to numbers: each one represents a person. How long will we accept this as inevitable?
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