Driving with a cellphone. (Daniel Hulshizer/Associated Press)New Jersey recently strengthened a law banning cellphone use while driving, and police there reportedly are already handing out tickets. I drive a lot in New Jersey and wasn’t aware of the law change until a friend pointed it out to me.
Today, the popular blog BoingBoing provides a helpful link for keeping track of the various cellphone driving laws. The link takes you to the Cellular-News site, which offers a list of cellphone driving laws by country. Scroll down to see the breakdown by state.
Another good reference I just found is provided by the Governors Highway Safety Association. I like this site because in addition to information about cellphone rules, you can click on your state and get more specific information about the driving laws there.
Obviously, the best solution is to just not talk on the cellphone while you’re driving, no matter what state you are in. Drivers chatting on cellphones are four times more likely to be involved in crashes that cause serious injury, the British Medical Journal reported in 2005.
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From 1 to 25 of 55 Comments
Are any States introducing legislation to ban headsets while driving?
They are incredibly distracting and present many of the same driving dangers that talking on a normal cellphone does.
— LeighHow obscene. A resource to find out where and when you can talk while you drive. There is absolutely no reason for anyone to be talking while driving. If it’s urgent, or an emergency, then pull-over.
— PJCNever mind talking, how about writing text messages while driving ? Are there any states that have passed laws to make the penalty a lifetime ban from driving ? If so, I will move there immediately….
From TPP — I believe only two states have banned texting while driving. I know jersey is one of them…someone help me out on the other??
— Stephan WintnerIn my view, these laws are obscene. What’s the difference between talking on a handsfree cellphone and talking to someone else in the car? What’s the difference between dialing a cellphone and adjusting the controls on a dashboard radio? There is no difference. No law can substitute for common sense.
Yes, I use a cellphone while driving, but only when it’s safe to do so. After 30+ years of safe driving, I’ve learned to depend on my own judgment and experience. Imagine that!
— Bill RogersYes, Tara, the research has always shown that the distraction while talking on a cell-phone is a real hazard, and even with a headset, that does not go away.
Some may want to argue that it is no different than talking to someone else in the car; listening to books on tape; listening to talk shows on the radio; watching a GPS system etc. and there is truth to that, too. But, I believe cell-phone conversations are much worse.
At least for talking to passengers, they can see when you need to attend to your driving. Someone on the non-auto side of a cell-phone conversation can make NO adjustments, and may add to the tension involved in driving by making other poor choices e.g. topics discussed.
Enlightened countries, like Australia, banned the use of cell-phones while driving, from the start or close to it, when they became available. America, as usual was the wild-west, and my state is very safety-conscious, but no attempt has been made to put this on the ballot.
It should be enough of a “convenience” to be able to pull to the side of the road, and make a quick conversation, as needed.
Driving, while making long conversations, is not only a safety hazard to self and others, but those long cell-phone conversations will yet be shown to be deleterious to brain health, too. Those devices have very strong energy fields, and I think they are not shielded well enough, in most cases.
I hope this helps others reconsider.
Best to all — Em
— Emhttp://diabetesdietdialogue.wordpress.com
“Everyone knows someone who needs this information!” (TM)
Poster #4: “In my view, these laws are obscene. What’s the difference between talking on a handsfree cellphone and talking to someone else in the car?”
When you’re talking to someone else in the car, they nominally should be aware of the traffic around the car as well, so when you get into a stop-and-go traffic jam or other difficult situations they can shut up and let you drive.
“Yes, I use a cellphone while driving, but only when it’s safe to do so. After 30+ years of safe driving, I’ve learned to depend on my own judgment and experience.”
And see, this is the problem. If you take a poll of how people rate their driving judgement and experience, nearly everyone rates themselves as somewhere “above average”. Many of the rest are “excellent”. And with so many “above average” and “excellent” drivers in the United States relying on their judgement and experience, no wonder it is such a safe and accident-free country!
— JasonCalifornia prohibits teen drivers from devices that would include texting. Maybe the figure if you are over 18 you don’t know how to text!
We have a new law coming 7/1/08 to ban hand held
— AndreaNice comment Jason!
— Phoebe HeymanWhen I was learning to drive 2 years ago I kept marveling at how anyone could do ANYTHING like change the radio or talk on a cellphone while driving because driving consumed 110% of my attention. After I became more familiar with it I saw that it was easy to fall into the trap of doing other stuff while driving. In reality, a car that maybe weighs 2 tons is an incredibly dangerous device that should be occupying the driver’s total attention. We’re all hypocrites because almost everyone eats, drinks and changes the radio attentively while driving. On a side note, I know I have heard of studies that show that seatbelts wear out way faster here than in Japan (I think it was Japan but possibly/ probably other countries as well), because Americans eat in their cars so much and spilling things on seatbelts weakens them. In conclusion, there are always ways to improve safety.
Washington state has made texting while driving a secondary offense, and the law took effect January 1st. In July, a hands-free device will become to only legal way to use a cell phone in a car in WA.
Link: http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/News/2007/12/26_TextMessagingLaw.htm
As a Seattle trauma nurse, I have seen many horrific instances of severe injuries and deaths resulting from car crashes caused by drivers texting or talking on a cell phone while driving. I would advise NEVER using a cell phone in a car except in the gravest emergency- it is an extreme risk. I think that in coming years we will look back on this time of people driving while using cell phones as a strange and tragic historic aberration.
— KayRecently took the online “Real Age” test. One of its high discrimination questions was the use of cell phones while driving.
— MARK KLEIN, M.D.I am a motorcyclist and a resident of northern New Jersey, and live in a town where hand-held cell phone use has been banned for some time. Since I’ve been endangered multiple times by cagers who seem to be paying far more attention to their telephone conversations than the road around them, I was glad to see such a ban enacted. Frankly, people on the phone are DANGEROUS.
Unfortunately, in addition to the civilians who do not seem to have changed their behavior in any noticeable fashion, I see police officers in their official vehicles gabbing on their cell phones with disturbing regularity.
People, when you are so involved in a conversation that you get into a fender bender with a car, it’s inconvenient. But when you hit me, it’s going to be murder, caused by a callous indifference to human life.
From TPP — I agree with everything you are saying, but cell phones are not your biggest safety hazard. Your motorcycle is. it doesn’t matter if you are a safe driver, it matters that being on a motorcycle makes you incredibly vulnerable. Rant all you want about bad drivers putting you at risk but it doesn’t change the reality that they are out there and putting you at risk. My family’s life was ruined by a motorcycle accident, so i confess to a bias. My sister reassured me that she was a safe and conscientious driver of a motorcycle and my far-too-prescient words to her were “I’m not worried about your driving. i’m worried about the idiot driver who doesn’t see you.”
— JLLet’s look at the overseas experience.
Australian Road Rule 300 - Use of Mobile Phones
(1) The driver of a vehicle (except an emergency vehicle or police vehicle) must not use a mobile phone while the vehicle is moving, or is stationary but not parked, unless the driver is exempt from this rule under another law of this jurisdiction.
Offence provision.
Note—Emergency vehicle, park and police vehicle are defined in the dictionary.
(2) Subrule (1) does not apply to a driver using a mobile phone if the phone is being used to make or receive a phone call and, while being so used:
(a) is secured in a mounting affixed to the vehicle; or
(b) is remotely operated by means of a device (whether connected to the phone by means of a wire or otherwise):
(i) affixed to the vehicle; or
(ii) worn by the driver in the manner intended by the manufacturer,
and the phone is not being held by the driver.
(3) To avoid doubt, nothing in subrule (2)(b) authorises a person to use a mobile phone by pressing a key on the phone, or by otherwise manipulating the body or screen of the phone, if the phone is not secured in a mounting affixed to the vehicle.
(4) For the purposes of this rule, a mobile phone will only be taken to be secured in a mounting affixed to the vehicle if—
(a) the mounting is commercially designed and manufactured for that purpose; and
(b) the mobile phone is secured in the mounting, and the mounting is affixed to the vehicle, in the manner intended by the manufacturer.
(5) In this rule:
affixed to, in relation to a vehicle, includes forming part of the vehicle;
held includes held by, or resting on, any part of the driver’s body, but does not include held in a pocket of the driver’s clothing or in a pouch worn by the driver;
mobile phone does not include a CB radio or any other two-way radio;
phone call does not include a text message, video message, email or similar communication;
use, in relation to a mobile phone, includes the following:
(a) holding the phone to, or near, the ear (whether or not engaged in a phone call);
(b) creating, sending or looking at a text or video message on the phone;
(c) turning the phone on or off;
(d) operating any other function of the phone.
Here is a worldwide comparison.
http://www.cellular-news.com/car_bans/
The worrying scientific finding though is that this Australian rule isn’t tight ENOUGH. Research suggests hands free is not that much safer after all.
http://www.abc.net.au/science/news/health/HealthRepublish_1412283.htm
A New Zealand study estimates that crashes involving mobile phones account for about 0.5% of all reported crashes there, and a fourfold increase in crash risk has been reported in some epidemiological studies, for both hand-held and hands-free use. This increase in risk is similar in magnitude to that associated with a blood alcohol concentration of 0.08%.
And what does that say about how dangerous it is to turn on the car radio or change a CD?
Let’s just ban the use of non-voice activated devices in cars to minimize distractions.
— JillyFlowerRe: #3
— TMLWashington is the other state (besides NJ) that has a no-texting-while-driving law. And Massachusetts recently passed a bill (after a kid was killed by a driver who was texting.)
JL #11 raises an interesting point - there are almost always exceptions in these laws for emergency vehicles. In Australia that is perceived to be less of a problem because fire, police and ambulance officers will always as a matter of course travel in pairs so 1 can be on the phone while the other drives. I don’t know about here though. I’ve only ever seen pairs in cars but that’s just observation.
I agree with TPP - motorcyclists (and even more bicyclists) have no idea the grief they cause conscientious drivers. I have had several near-misses where I opted for a closer-than-I-would-like encounter with another car rather than risk an accident with cyclist or motorcyclist. I know if I collide with them I’d almost certainly kill them and frankly I’d rather risk my own life than live with someone else’s death on my conscience. I know they must face many bullying drivers but spare a thought for those of us who take risks to avoid you that we should not really have to take.
— JillyFlowerPhoenix has banned cellphone use while driving after a teenager killed herself and the driver she crashed into while text-messaging. It is difficult to enforce, though.
The state Senate defeated a bill to achieve this.
The state of Washington banned cellphone use while driving about a year ago.
— RAMAny kind of distraction when you’re driving can result in a catastrophe. There was a 17-year old girl driving along a country road a few years ago who bent over and rummaged around with one hand looking for a particular music tape. As she was so involved, she hit and killed 3 couples on bikes on the side of the road, middle-aged marrieds out on a lark. I often wonder how this girl is living with that. Fumbling with radios is another major distraction. Long ago the dials were simple; you could manage the two knobs without your eyes leaving the road. Then in later cars they had to complicate the setup so you have to look at the radio. At least I do, so I never play it. And I wonder how many people have been killed or maimed while looking at maps while they drive.
— Sonja Coryathttp://www.sonjarants.blogspot.com
Study just published: merely *listening* on a cellphone (handsfree) causes decreases in brain attentiveness directly comparable to *being drunk*:
http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/99696.php
[includes link to full text of study]
This study notes a difference between conversing with someone in person in the car, and conversing on a cellphone.
— Amy O’HairMy philosophy:
When you’re guiding thousands of pounds of metal down a road, you should just be doing one thing: guiding thouseand of pounds of metal down the road.
— asRe #9 amd #13, thanks guys.
But my point was not that it should be illegal - there is no question in my mind that it should be.
But it should also be a primary offence, with a massively severe penalty. A lifetime ban strikes me as quite a deserved punishment for anyone excercising such poor judgement on the same streets I have to share with them.
(I assume by primary and secondary, you mean whether the police can pull someone over for that alone)
-Stephan
— Stephan WintnerYou can argue for or against laws which prohibit you from talking on a cell phone (hand-held *or* hands-free) while driving. I personally don’t feel that unsafe talking while I drive (when I get into tough driving conditions, I’ve got brains enough to hang up), but I also understand the arguments pointing out the difference between talking to a passenger and talking to someone on the other end of a phone line.
However, if cell phone use isn’t banned entirely, I think hands-free laws actually make things MORE dangerous. Think about it: when I cross the border from Massachusetts to Connecticut, I have to:
1) rummage around in my glove compartment for the headset
2) try to plug the headset into the phone without taking my hands off the wheel
3) try to get the earpiece correctly seated in my ear, which almost never happens on the first try.
And, of course, this is all worse if I’m already on the phone.
Why pols think that forcing me to do an unfamiliar, multi-step process while hurtling down the road at 70 mph is a good idea I’ll never know (especially since it’s been shown that holding the phone and talking on it is no more distracting than using a headset to talk).
And before you all start up with cries of ’see, she’s the problem!’ and ‘whoa — watch out when she gets on the road!’: My driving record is spotless, despite using my phone as substitute entertainment for my broken radio (ie, always). And no, I’m not 16, or even close to it.
— kbWe need to treat cell phone usage while driving the same as DUI with the same penalties. And, as with DUI, a driver must surrender their cell phone for examination as to usage prior to and during the incident. And, insurance companies need to subject their insured drivers to penalties for convictions that arise from cell phone usage while driving e.g. if convicted of DUI or driving while using a cell phone the deductible for any ensuing accident rises to $5,000.
— TRSOur roads would be quite a bit safer if people carpooled and drivers conversed with their passengers, instead of jabbering on their cell phones during their commutes. For one thing, there’d be fewer cars on the road!
I live in Chicago, where cell phone calls while driving are supposedly banned, and I’d say at least 1/3 of the cars on the road are driven by solo drivers with phones plastered to their ears. I’ve observed this while taking the train.
I wonder how many people fiddle with their radios/CD players, talk on their cell phones, or do other activities that are dangerous while driving (reading, putting on makeup, eating) to take their minds off of how dangerous driving really is. In the process, though, they make the roads even less safe. If you think you are an experienced enough driver to do any of these things without endangering others, you’re most likely fooling yourself.
I hope the motorcyclist who commented above is wearing a helmet, and driving cautiously.
— HeronThere is at least one study that concludes there is no difference between talking on a cell phone and using a cell phone earpiece such as Bluetooth.
Should we ban earpieces? Headphones? What’s next?
— jack#20 kb: you don’t HAVE to 1)rummage, 2)plug, 3)get earpiece in ear, 4)be on the phone, WHILE YOU ARE DRIVING! And yes, I am yelling, because you are about to run into me!
— MoragI walk to work, and I can’t tell you how many times I am almost mowed down by a driver in an SUV talking on a cell phone. The most common situation is when a driver makes a right on red without checking to see if there is a pedestrian in the crosswalk.
— sharon