I think it's stupid. People are just not using their heads. If you are in a situation (downtown Seattle comes to mind to me) that you are called on to make
complex driving decisions, you shoudln't be talking on a cell phone. On the freeway cruising along with not a lot of traffic, then I don't see the
problem...I do this all the time. They still will allow hands-free which is even stupider (is that a word? LOL) You would still be distracted by talking to
someone.
New handsfree law in effect Tuesday
07:36 AM PDT on Monday, June 30, 2008
Associated Press and KING5.com Staff
SEATTLE - For Washington state drivers, there will be no more juggling the Blackberry and latte with one hand, while driving with the other.
Video: Wash. going handsfree on Tuesday
Larger screenE-mail this clip
It's now time to look like you're talking to yourself while driving.
On Tuesday, drivers here will be among the more than 28 million additional people who will have to either hang up their cell phones or start using "handsfree" headsets while driving, as the latest chunk of the nation's motorists come under a law that's expanding across the country.
"I would prefet that you not use your cell phone personally. And I don't use mine," said Washington state senator Tracey Eide, who authored the state's new law. "I want to make suure that you get from point A to point B and that your family sees you that evening," she said.
Washington and California are the latest two states to enact a law prohibiting talking on cell phones while driving. The new laws do allow drivers to use handsfree devices -- those little earpieces that make people look like something out of a sci-fi movie.
This past year, 22 state legislatures considered or are considering similar laws, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. A handful of states -- like New York and New Jersey -- already have laws in place. Lawmakers in Louisiana recently sent a bill to the governor's desk.
"We'll continue to see more legislation as more devices go in a car," said Matt Sundeen, who has monitored cell phone laws for the National Conference of State Legislatures. "A lot of people agree these types of devices are distracting, but the real question is are they so distracting they need some type of restriction?"
But traffic-safety advocates say the new laws will have little impact. In question is the ability to enforce the new law, and the overall effect at curbing the distraction of talking while driving.
"Laws like Washington's probably will have a big effect on making people feel good about passing a law, but zero effect on highway safety," said Russ Rader, a spokesman for the Virginia-based Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.
A study by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety found that drivers using cell phones are four times more likely to be in an accident and suggested limiting cell phone use to handsfree devices doesn't have much of an impact.
But it's the talking, traffic-safety advocates say, that distracts people.
"If you continue to allow handsfree phoning, you haven't addressed the safety problem," Rader said.
"We're just gong to wait and see," said Eide. "This is one step. Just one step."
California's law is tougher than Washington's. In California, the new law is a primary offense, meaning drivers can get pulled over if a police officer merely sees a driver talking on a cell phone. In Washington, the law is a secondary offense, meaning a driver has to be pulled over for something like speeding before a ticket is issued.
Washington has already banned texting while driving, but also at the secondary offense level. A total of 12 tickets were issued between January and June of this year for texting while driving, according to the Washington State Patrol.
In 2007, there were more than 141,000 collisions in Washington state, and 158 of those had listed "operating" a hand-held device -- such as a cell phone or a MP3 player -- as a contributing factor, according to the state patrol.
"What we're trying to get across is that when you're driving you need to be driving," said Sgt. Freddy Williams of the state patrol. "It's going to help keeping both hands on the wheel, but you need to focus on (the) driving, especially at freeway speeds."
New York, the first state to pass a law against hand-held cell phone chatting, saw more than 81,000 tickets issued in 2002, the first full year the law was in place. By 2007, the number of tickets jumped to more than 312,000, according to the New York Department of Motor Vehicles.
Lt. Glenn Minor, a spokesman for New York State Police, attributes the increase in tickets issued to police officers getting more used to monitoring for the violation.
Minor, though, said that seeing a driver using their hands to talk on the cell phones is an "easily observable violation."
But two other surveys produced by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety found that compliance was a problem. In North Carolina, a state that banned teenagers from using cell phones while driving, cell phone used actually increased after the law took effect and teen drivers thought the law was not being enforced, the 2008 report said.
A survey of more than 700 people in Washington commissioned by Seattle-based PEMCO Insurance said 60 percent of those surveyed think the state's law should be a primary offense.
Reaction from people on Seattle streets was mixed about the need for a law. But overall, people agreed cell phones are a distraction and may lead to accidents.
"I've been in close calls...because I was not paying attention," said 55-year-old Tony Championsmith, who bought himself a headset after his latest close call. "Luckily, the other drivers were paying attention."
But 76-year-old Barry Jackson was disappointed to hear the new law allows headsets. He said the conversation is the distracting factor and allowing people to continue talking is more of the same.
"Why have the law, then?" Jackson said.
New handsfree law in effect Tuesday
07:36 AM PDT on Monday, June 30, 2008
Associated Press and KING5.com Staff
SEATTLE - For Washington state drivers, there will be no more juggling the Blackberry and latte with one hand, while driving with the other.
Video: Wash. going handsfree on Tuesday
Larger screenE-mail this clip
It's now time to look like you're talking to yourself while driving.
On Tuesday, drivers here will be among the more than 28 million additional people who will have to either hang up their cell phones or start using "handsfree" headsets while driving, as the latest chunk of the nation's motorists come under a law that's expanding across the country.
"I would prefet that you not use your cell phone personally. And I don't use mine," said Washington state senator Tracey Eide, who authored the state's new law. "I want to make suure that you get from point A to point B and that your family sees you that evening," she said.
Washington and California are the latest two states to enact a law prohibiting talking on cell phones while driving. The new laws do allow drivers to use handsfree devices -- those little earpieces that make people look like something out of a sci-fi movie.
This past year, 22 state legislatures considered or are considering similar laws, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. A handful of states -- like New York and New Jersey -- already have laws in place. Lawmakers in Louisiana recently sent a bill to the governor's desk.
"We'll continue to see more legislation as more devices go in a car," said Matt Sundeen, who has monitored cell phone laws for the National Conference of State Legislatures. "A lot of people agree these types of devices are distracting, but the real question is are they so distracting they need some type of restriction?"
But traffic-safety advocates say the new laws will have little impact. In question is the ability to enforce the new law, and the overall effect at curbing the distraction of talking while driving.
"Laws like Washington's probably will have a big effect on making people feel good about passing a law, but zero effect on highway safety," said Russ Rader, a spokesman for the Virginia-based Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.
A study by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety found that drivers using cell phones are four times more likely to be in an accident and suggested limiting cell phone use to handsfree devices doesn't have much of an impact.
But it's the talking, traffic-safety advocates say, that distracts people.
"If you continue to allow handsfree phoning, you haven't addressed the safety problem," Rader said.
"We're just gong to wait and see," said Eide. "This is one step. Just one step."
California's law is tougher than Washington's. In California, the new law is a primary offense, meaning drivers can get pulled over if a police officer merely sees a driver talking on a cell phone. In Washington, the law is a secondary offense, meaning a driver has to be pulled over for something like speeding before a ticket is issued.
Washington has already banned texting while driving, but also at the secondary offense level. A total of 12 tickets were issued between January and June of this year for texting while driving, according to the Washington State Patrol.
In 2007, there were more than 141,000 collisions in Washington state, and 158 of those had listed "operating" a hand-held device -- such as a cell phone or a MP3 player -- as a contributing factor, according to the state patrol.
"What we're trying to get across is that when you're driving you need to be driving," said Sgt. Freddy Williams of the state patrol. "It's going to help keeping both hands on the wheel, but you need to focus on (the) driving, especially at freeway speeds."
New York, the first state to pass a law against hand-held cell phone chatting, saw more than 81,000 tickets issued in 2002, the first full year the law was in place. By 2007, the number of tickets jumped to more than 312,000, according to the New York Department of Motor Vehicles.
Lt. Glenn Minor, a spokesman for New York State Police, attributes the increase in tickets issued to police officers getting more used to monitoring for the violation.
Minor, though, said that seeing a driver using their hands to talk on the cell phones is an "easily observable violation."
But two other surveys produced by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety found that compliance was a problem. In North Carolina, a state that banned teenagers from using cell phones while driving, cell phone used actually increased after the law took effect and teen drivers thought the law was not being enforced, the 2008 report said.
A survey of more than 700 people in Washington commissioned by Seattle-based PEMCO Insurance said 60 percent of those surveyed think the state's law should be a primary offense.
Reaction from people on Seattle streets was mixed about the need for a law. But overall, people agreed cell phones are a distraction and may lead to accidents.
"I've been in close calls...because I was not paying attention," said 55-year-old Tony Championsmith, who bought himself a headset after his latest close call. "Luckily, the other drivers were paying attention."
But 76-year-old Barry Jackson was disappointed to hear the new law allows headsets. He said the conversation is the distracting factor and allowing people to continue talking is more of the same.
"Why have the law, then?" Jackson said.
