How many mobile apps do you use every day via your smartphones? Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, pedometer, calorie counter, Google Maps, calendar… this list is sometimes more or less extensive depending on the person in question, but the conclusion is one: most of us can’t imagine functioning every day without being able to use particular applications that make our lives easier or simply more interesting. Leaving aside the applications that are dedicated to particular professional groups and the use of which is inscribed in functioning within a given profession, making people’s work very easy.
Professional drivers have not been overlooked by the developers of applications, on the contrary – it is for them that tools were specially created, which later found their way into general circulation and whose functionality was also appreciated by those who drive only their own private cars. Without some of these applications, it is directly impossible to imagine the possibility of performing the work of a driver.
At the same time, it is worth knowing, and the use of some of the functions of these applications is banned in individual European countries and the driver can incur a severe penalty for using them. So let’s take a look at the most popular driver apps and their banned functions.
GPS navigation
Do you remember the days when we drove around the country and Europe with paper maps and notes, cursing detours and any reconstruction, causing us to wander around like children in a fog, faintly hoping to stare at our map? He doesn’t know a life who hasn’t gotten lost in Berlin or missed an exit on the highway, racking up senseless kilometers. These stories amuse, told years later as anecdotes, but being in these situations then, we did not laugh at all….
But then there it was – the queen of all routes, the salvation of the errant, the soothing of drivers’ shattered nerves, the rescue of those without a sense of direction… GPS navigation!
Most new cars have satellite navigation installed as standard; in older vehicles we can use it in the form of a special compact device available for purchase at any electronics store. We can also download the GPS application to our smartphone or tablet – it all depends on which form we find it more convenient to use it in, and whether we want to invest in the purchase of additional equipment or prefer to download a free application to our mobile devices.
Today it is difficult to imagine a driver’s work without the ability to use navigation, especially when he has to drive to places where he has never had the opportunity to be before. Thanks to navigation, he is able to predict the length of the route, the application continuously suggests a choice of alternative routes if he sees traffic obstructions on the primary route – this saves the driver a lot of time… and nerves.
Forbidden functions of navigation
What about prohibited functions of navigation? The application gives us the ability to use the police radar detection function, which is strictly prohibited in Poland and is punishable by a fine of PLN 500 and 3 penalty points for drivers wishing to circumvent the system.
Video recorder
In times of permanent bumps and accidents on the roads, as well as extortion and misrepresentation of the course of these accidents, it has become an invaluable aid to injured drivers and representatives of uniformed services wishing to reconstruct the course of the incident.
It is a small camera, often with a display, that continuously records images from behind the windshield of a car. It has a recording function so that we can return to the recording from a given time and present it, if only as proof of our innocence in the event of a traffic collision.
The cost of buying a video recorder starts from just over a hundred zlotys, ending with more serious amounts of around a thousand zlotys, depending on the quality of the device and the functions it has.
Video recorder and regulations in different countries
But beware: in many countries, the use of a car camera is prohibited or available to a limited extent… In Austria, you will pay a fine of up to several thousand euros for having a video recorder. In Germany you can record only for private purposes, it is forbidden to share the videos without the consent of the people appearing on them, the same is true in France and Belgium.
In France, the UK, Switzerland, Slovakia and Norway, we must mount the camera so that it is not in the driver’s field of vision. In Hungary, we can only store all material recorded on the video recorder for five working days after the recording.
In Switzerland, where data protection laws are particularly strict, we cannot record without the consent of those being recorded, in addition, it is forbidden to use the DVR to document one’s trip and for entertainment purposes – so owning a camcorder simply becomes useless in this country.
So, as you can see, before we travel through other countries, it is worth checking whether we will not pay a fine for using a video recorder, or expose ourselves to unpleasantness.
And how is the situation in Poland? Here the only restriction is on publishing the recordings – we can’t upload them to the web if the image shows someone’s image, license plate numbers, etc.
CB Radio
CB Radio is a device that allows voice communication via radio bands between drivers within a range of tens of kilometers. Originally, it was intended to be used for efficient and free communication between traffic participants to inform each other about obstructions, accidents on the road or to obtain any needed information about the route. Users of passenger cars, extremely rarely use this device, it is definitely associated with professional drivers as users.
Certainly, the opportunity to talk over CB Radio with other drivers, is an enrichment of the time spent in the cab of the truck, an opportunity to exchange views, insights, get to know each other … and sometimes quarrels, as surely experienced by many a professional driver using this facility.
CB radio is also used by drivers to inform each other about police checks on the road – information about them spreads instantly and extremely efficiently, making it more difficult for police officers to catch and punish traffic pirates. This is the reason why the use of this application is prohibited in some countries.
CB radio under the regulations of various countries
In Germany, Austria, Northern Ireland and Romania, there is a total ban on the use of CB Radio, while in many countries, a special permit is required for its use – including Bulgaria, Croatia, Spain, Serbia, Macedonia, Sweden and Turkey.
Therefore, as in the case of video recorders, it’s worth making sure before a trip through the countries in question that you won’t face unpleasant consequences for using CB Radio, and that you’re not breaking the laws of the country you’re traveling in.
So, as you can see, there are several very useful applications created with professional drivers in mind. Their functionality has caused them to become widely used by most people who own their private vehicles – at the same time, the creativity of their users has meant that the authorities of individual countries have been forced to apply restrictions on their use.
