Some York drivers are defiantly flouting the ban on driving while using their mobile phone - despite the fact that they could all face a harsh fine.

Police chiefs say that while most motorists know what they are doing is now illegal, they cannot resist making and taking calls.

One York officer said it took less than two minutes to catch a driver chatting on his phone at a busy city centre junction yesterday.

It took an Evening Press reporter just ten minutes to spot five drivers - and one cyclist - ignoring the law as they negotiated a blind bend in Low Ousegate.

North Yorkshire Police bosses, who have issued 571 fixed penalty tickets since the law was introduced last December, have welcomed plans to double the £30 fine and to endorse licenses with three points.

PC Andrew Forth, a member of York's cycle team, said his two-wheeled transport helped him catch a handful of drivers using mobile phones every shift.

He said: "It's very dangerous. Drivers just don't seem to have any regard for what they are doing, and there is no doubt that a lot of them are still using mobile phones.

"Everybody knows as soon as I stop them that they are doing something wrong. Hopefully, the harsher fine will discourage people in future."

A North Yorkshire Police spokesman said senior officers were not aware of any fatal accidents in the county in which mobile phones have been to blame.

But safety groups claim that up to 23 people have died on Britain's roads in accidents where mobile phones have been partly to blame, and more than 7,000 motorists in Scotland have been fined.

Figures reveal that 268 drivers have been issued with tickets in the Humberside, while 1,797 people have been dealt with in West Yorkshire, since the legislation was introduced.

The Government has unveiled plans to double the fine to £60 and to impose penalty points on those who flout the law.

But road safety campaigners have asked Ministers to go further, as they say more needs to be done to persuade motorists to switch off their phones.

The Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA) wants the Government to extend the ban to cover hands-free phones.

Kevin Clinton, RoSPA head of road safety, said he wanted police to take action against everyone they saw using a hand-held phone at the wheel.

He said: "Some people still think that their phone call is more important than someone's life and they should not be allowed to get away with it."

Research by RoSPA has shown that motorists using mobile phones - whether hand-held or hands-free - are four-times more likely to crash because of the distraction of the telephone conversation.

Updated: 10:20 Friday, December 03, 2004