Tag Archives: texting

Bills Seek Banning Cell Phone Usage in Cars

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Texting or talking on cell phones while operating a vehicle can possibly become illegal soon if one of two bills on Tuesday is approved by a House committee, however the use of hands-free devices would still be legal.

The House Transportation and Highways and Public Works Committee approved both bills, one of which was approved by Rep. Austin Badon dealing with any vehicles, by a 12-2 vote in New Orleans.

The original bill was meant for the use of commercial vehicles only but was changed for the use of all vehicles.

“No one has the right to put another person’s life in jeopardy,” said Badon. Drivers who use hand-held phones are “four times as likely to get into crashes serious enough to harm themselves.”

Passing the bill is believed to allow the state half of the $94 million it would receive in federal funds divided amongst all the states that ban the use of cell phones while driving, making it a primary offense.

Officers have always had the right to pull over a driver and ticket them as long as something is declared as a primary offense.

“It’s a new carrot dangling out there,” Badon said.

Badon’s bill provides the first violation in exchange for $100 the second for around $150, and $50 more for the next two violations, giving the fourth an opportunity to attest to get it lowered.

Rep. Hollis Downs was approved to proceed all fines from the Transportation Trust Fund to help pay for improvements along the highway. He said that since the money is an excess, it will not be taking away any funds from any agencies.

Safety Group Calls for More Cell Phone Ban Data

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It is currently legal in 41 states allowing drivers to use cell phones, and a leading highway safety organization recommends keeping it that way.

The Governors Highway Safety Association, GHSA, believes states should not ban anything yet until effective research has been done by states.

“The problem is the research is conflicting on the issue,” executive director of the group Barbara Harsha says, who advises on safety traffic. “We don’t know if handheld bans are effective, and we don’t know if they actually make the problem worse.”

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety last year said it found no reductions in crashes after the use of cell phones while driving was banned in California, Connecticut, New York, and Washington, D.C.

The National Safety Council believes handheld cell phones don’t expand and cover enough territory. “We think there is enough research to enact total bans, handheld, and hands-free,” say senior director of transportation initiatives at the NSC David Teater. “And there’s no evidence that hands-free devices provide any safety impact.”

The federal agency that tracks road deaths, otherwise known as the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, says “we feel strongly there is robust evidence on the dangers of distracted driving,” says the administration’s director of communications.

The GHSA had made its recommendations after looking at research on distracted driving since the year 2000, which are about 350 studies.

This of course led to questions from governors and state legislators who are trying to unravel the unfolding aspects of road safety.

Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood has made curbing distracted driving as a severe issue.

Some corporations are also trying to restrict the use of cellphones from employees while being in company vehicles. The use of cell phones is limited among federal workers.

Nine states and the District of Columbia have banned cell phones for all drivers, which makes the greatest motive from lawmakers.

Texting while driving is still illegal in 34 states, not including the District of Columbia. Twelve states had it banned in 2009, and 11 banned it last year, but only two have so far this year.

No states currently ban all cell phone use by all drivers of all ages.