Wellington, Sep 15 (IANS): Ten drivers were caught using their cellphones in just 90 minutes at a single intersection in New Zealand's Auckland city, the media reported on Tuesday.
The number of people caught using their phone while driving or in a traffic queue has tripled in the five years and police have started a crackdown on distracted drivers this week, Radio New Zealand reported.
Distraction was a factor in more than 1,000 crashes nationally last year - with 22 people killed and 19 seriously injured.
Figures released by the police last month showed 21,148 people were fined for using phones in 2014, compared to 13,547 the year before and just 8,232 in 2010.
Sergeant Ashley Gore said Auckland city district officers alone wrote about 500 tickets a month for drivers using phones.