New Jersey motorists should think twice before they reach for their cell phones while driving as a state law took effect July 1 banning the use of handheld phones and requiring hands-free devices. The law, signed by the New Jersey governor in January, is the second statewide ban in the U.S. on using a handheld phone while driving, following New York state’s 2001 legislation.
A law prohibiting so-called “distracted driving behavior,” including use of handheld cell phones in vehicles, also went into effect July 1 in Washington, D.C.
The hands-free-only laws again highlight the issue of distracted driving as efforts to legislate phone behavior in vehicles continue. The wireless industry has expressed mixed attitudes about efforts to legislate cell-phone use in vehicles. While Verizon Wireless lent its support to both the New York and New Jersey bills, with key caveats, Sprint Corp. is “opposed to any attempt to single out wireless phone use as the only distraction in the automobile,” said spokesman Travis Sowders.
Verizon supported the New York and New Jersey legislation because they were applied uniformly statewide, exempted emergency calls and permitted hands-free devices to be used, according to David Samberg, public-relations manager for the New York metro area. Verizon also asked for phase-in periods for the laws to take effect.
A prime reason why Verizon adopted its stance was because local municipalities in New York were beginning to adopt their own, often disparate laws, making compliance difficult for drivers moving from one city to the next.
Even before these laws began popping up, Samberg said the company saw the need to educate cell-phone users with the message: “When you’re behind the wheel, driving is your No. 1 priority.”
“Education is the only thing that can make people more responsible drivers,” said Kimberly Kuo, Cellular Telecommunications & Internet Association spokeswoman. Legislation, she added, “is not a quick fix. ‘Hands-free’ is good, but the industry’s education effort goes much further.” The efforts include public service announcements, ads and brochures included with new phones. Sowders said that Sprint is “doing what we can to help our customers comply with the (N.J.) law” and encourage voice dialing.
Sprint’s position about driver distraction highlights a key issue-cell-phone use is but one behavior falling under the category of distracted driving. In a June 2003 study, “Distractions in Everyday Driving,” funded by the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety, cell-phone use ranked eighth on a list of driver distractions linked to crashes. “Outside object, person or event” topped the list.
Responding to the broad behaviors grouped under the distracted-driving umbrella, the Washington, D.C., law also covers “reading, writing, performing personal grooming, interacting with pets or unsecured cargo” in addition to handheld cell-phone use. A 30-day warning period has been set for the law, ending Aug. 1.
According to N.J. Assemblyman Douglas Fisher, prime sponsor of the New Jersey legislation, the final language of the bill was a compromise and the law can only be applied as a secondary action when a driver is stopped for a traffic violation or other offense. Fines range from $100 to $250 and emergency use of handheld phones is permitted.
In addition, hands-free phones must not interfere with vehicle safety equipment such as airbags.
Pam Maiolo, manager of public affairs for AAA Mid-Atlantic, questioned the logic of the compromise. She asked, “if safety is the issue, why not a primary offense?” She also challenged the perception that a hands-free device is safer.
“There are still significant risks associated with hands-free phone use while driving,” said Rae Tyson, spokesman for the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration. “The same sort of distraction potential exists for hands-free as exists for handheld. It is the cognitive overload that concerns us and the fact that that doesn’t go away just because you don’t have to be holding on to the device,” Tyson added.
Data from a 100-vehicle, year-long study of distracted driving conducted by Virginia Tech study to be released soon “will provide more insight into this whole issue of handheld versus hands-free,” said Tyson. He acknowledged that the current data regarding accidents resulting from cell-phone use is sparse.
What is clear is that people like having cell phones with them when they hop into a vehicle. Most AAA members, said Maiolo, feel safer with a phone in the car.
Fisher noted that the law has generated a lot of dialogue in New Jersey and has caused people to consider pulling over before using the phone. “I think (the law) will cut down on the distraction of holding a handheld cell phone,” he said. “I hope it doesn’t have to go further,” he said.
However, the author of the New York law, Assemblyman Felix Ortiz, advocates a complete, national ban on the use of cell phones, handheld and hands-free, in vehicles. “I think we’re moving in that direction,” he said. “People have taken this issue very seriously because this is about concentration and people do lose concentration while they’re driving and talking on the cell phone.”
Enforcement of the law in New York has been rigorous, with 269,230 tickets issued from the law’s implementation in 2001 to April of this year, according to Christine Burling, spokeswoman for the New York State Department of Motor Vehicles.
