Acting Transport Control Department Director Roxanne Christopher has slammed Oleander Cycles for selling a moped with a cell phone receiver which flashes for incoming calls.

She branded the feature a road hazard and said it would perpetuate the problem of people talking while riding.

Ms Christopher, who is also Government Road Safety Officer, said she hoped Oleander would take the vehicle off the road or disconnect the light.

"We are asking people not to buy these bikes. They are not a safe vehicle to be riding."

However Oleander were unrepentant last night and said TCD was nit-picking.

Ms Christopher said riders were already being spotted wedging mobiles into their helmets but not stopping to answer their calls. She said: "I think it is careless for a local distributor to bring these bikes in. I am disappointed, greatly disappointed."

She said motorbikes were already the most dangerous form of transport in the world.

"If you are going around a corner and you see this light flashing and you answer the phone it's so easy to be involved in a crash or cause it.

"If you have one hand on the bike because you are using the other hand for to get the call it's much less steady than a car. We are aggressively trying to educate people to be safe drivers and this clearly goes against that."

She said people who got calls should pull over in a safe spot.

"It's disappointing. We have such a positive partnership with Oleander so I was very surprised they would not even see it would be an issue."

Ms Christopher also rounded on cell phone company Telecom Bermuda for helping promote the bikes and she said she was trying to contact both companies to complain. The bike was featured in a newspaper advertisement last week in which the purchasers of a Telecom Bermuda cell phone could enter a draw with Oleander to win the Zhonghu ZY100.

Buyers of the bike also get a Telecom mobile gift certificate.

Oleander president John Leseur said he had not heard from Ms Christopher and was trying to contact her. He said he was aware people should not use hand held phones while driving. He said of the bike: "When your cell phone goes it flashes red - red for stop. If someone is trying to get in touch anyone with any sense pulls over and deals with it.

"The light can be disconnected but if we are doing that we should disconnect all rings and vibrations on mobile phones."

He said the real problem was that the law was not enforced by catching drivers talking on the phone. He branded the TCD complaint as nit-picking and said if the light was a distraction then so were oil gauge warning lights and he queried if they would be banned too. He said: "I have never heard of an oil gauge causing an accident but if your engine seizes up you will be thrown over the handlebars. Where does it all end? It's getting to the point of being ridiculous."

He said the bulbs could be taken out, adding: "They will probably come on all machines in the future. People will carry cell phones. You won't get away from that."

He said the company had been selling the bike for almost a year and had sold well. "I don't think it's because of the phone, it's because it's a good price."

Telecom Bermuda Vice President of Sales and Customer Service John Manderson said: "Cell phones are a convenient commodity and an integral part of society today.

"We certainly encourage cell phone users to be responsible when they use them, particularly when operating a vehicle."