KELLY BROWN: In a traffic jam? Time for everyone to grab a mobile to raise the alert

I was recently caught up in the tailbacks of a bad accident, which resulted in my being stationary for the best part of two hours.

Now, while no-one likes to be stuck in traffic, it was amazing to watch how the modern driver reacts – and the phases people go through.

Phase one – information.

Everyone was reaching for their mobile phone, calling in to work, calling friends, texting, doing whatever it is they needed to do to raise the alert.

In every car around me, everyone was on their mobile phone – either calling, texting, tweeting, Facebooking or looking on the internet.

Then of course there is the fiddling with the radio to try to tune in to a station which has updates on when you will get moving again.

Phase two – frustration.

Now this is the phase where you start to see drivers get out of their cars to look at the traffic (just in case the view outside the car is amazingly better).

When, realising the only conclusion is ‘yes, there is traffic’, you see the (mostly male) drivers get back into their cars and shake their heads in frustration.

It is almost as though they feel they should have the powers of Moses to be able to part the cars in front.

Phase three – boredom.

The realisation there is nothing you can do so you just have to sit there while the (brilliant) emergency services do their bit to help whichever poor souls are involved.

My answer was to eat. In fact, by 9am, I think I had eaten most of my lunch while huddled under the blanket which I keep in the car for the children.

Phase four – so what happened?