iPod warning ... one of the posters from the NSW Police pedestrian awareness campaign.
NSW Police have launched a confronting new campaign urging people to pay attention when crossing the road while listening to iPods and using mobile phones.
The graphic campaign, running on the NSW Police website, includes a series of posters showing people lying lifeless on the road with a white headphone cable snaking around their bodies like a chalk outline.
"Recent growth in the use of portable media players and mobile phone usage has led to a need for greater awareness among both pedestrians and motorists to ensure these new technologies don't lead to a rise in pedestrian accidents," NSW Chief Traffic Services Commander John Hartley said.
Superintendent Hartley said it was impossible to determine how many recent pedestrian accidents resulted from music player or mobile phone use, or whether that number had increased recently.
The Australian Transport Safety Bureau's records only go as deeply as deaths from "pedestrian distraction".
"Although we have seen no increase in pedestrian incidents over recent years, the growth and uptake of these new technologies could be a potential problem and I would seek to ensure the public are aware of the impact of these new technologies - both for pedestrians and motorists alike," Superintendent Hartley said.
He said extra caution should be exercised by pedestrians in areas of high vehicle and pedestrian concentration such as near train stations, bus stops and CBD areas. As well, motorists should be aware of the growing use of portable media players and mobile phones by pedestrians.
In February last year, the Pedestrian Council of Australia said gadget makers should be forced to warn customers of the dangers of using their products while crossing roads.
At the time, Superintendent Hartley told the Herald: "You can't legislate stupidity - if people are stupid enough to do something that's so distracting they can't see cars coming, that's a problem they need to deal with."
