Yesterday the Washington State House Transportation Committee passed through SB 6345, a new bill that would further prohibit cellphone use while driving, making having a phone in your hand a primary offense subject to traffic stops and a $124 fine, with the sole exception of emergency use only.
In July 2008 legislators made the use of handheld devices while driving a secondary offense, meaning police could only dock you for it if they see another violation before initiating a traffic stop. If passed, this law would make Washington the fifth state to elevate holding a cellphone while driving to a primary offense, alongside the District of Columbia.
36th District Rep. Reuven Carlyle (D), who is behind companion bill HB 2635 that would make texting while driving specifically a primary offense, has thrown his support behind SB 6345.
“I am excited that the House Transportation Committee has passed this bill. Parents and other volunteer citizen activists worked incredibly hard along with Sen. Eide and me for many, many months, and I look forward to doing all that I can to get this bill through the House,” Carlyle said in a written statement yesterday.
“We want drivers, and especially teenagers, to know they are not just operating a car, they are behind the wheel of a 3,000-pound weapon, and they have a moral and public obligation to operate them safely. No one likes overregulation, but this is a matter of public safety and we could all do worse than to get on board with Oprah Winfrey’s cause.”
SB 6345 would be even stricter for those with driver’s permits and intermediate licenses, disallowing the use of hands free devices such as headsets and even the speakerphone feature.
Our news partner, the Seattle Times, is reporting that opinions are divided on the regulation of the new bill, and the severity of the penalties. Though proponents cite studies indicating that using a cellphone while driving produces results on par to driving drunk, others believe the act is no more of a distraction than a number of other inappropriate–and unregulated–behind the wheel activities, such as eating, applying makeup and smoking.
Aside from using cellphones as a scapegoat for a lack personal responsibility, many opponents also believe the bill is way for the state to collect more in taxes. From the Seattle Times:
Washington could stand to bring in a lot of revenue. In New York, the first state to make holding a cellphone reason enough for a traffic stop, police from 2001 to 2008 handed out 1.28 million tickets.
“I just think that it is an inappropriate use of police powers to pull people over and invade their privacy because they chose to talk on the phone while driving a car,” said Benton. “You cannot legislate responsibility. Citizens need to be responsible for themselves.”
Read the full Times story here. And tell us, what do you think? Are you for or against making handing a phone while driving a primary offense? (Disclosure: Rep. Reuven Carlyle is a sponsor of Queen Anne View.)
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10 responses so far ↓
1 Name // Feb 25, 2010 at 7:12 pm
I think that any distracted-driving behavior should be a primary offense, including eating and applying makeup. I don't smoke, but I don't think that smoking makes one as distracted.
Safety first! These cars can kill people when they're not operated safely!
2 southslope // Feb 26, 2010 at 1:12 am
Blah blah blah.
Why don't we give out IQ tests and eliminate the idiots first?
You stink, Carlyle.
3 repreuvencarlyle // Feb 26, 2010 at 6:12 am
Well, sorry you feel that way. I guess when I see kids, pedestrians and other drivers getting killed or injured from distracted drivers, I feel a responsibility to try and do something about it.
Reuven.
4 southslope // Feb 26, 2010 at 2:58 pm
Oh C'mon. Get real. If data showed even a 5% decrease in accidents this *might* be worth considering. However, you and I both know that from all states that have passed such laws there has been a zero percent drop in accidents and no change in safety.
You, my friend, are just another self serving wannabe politician. You are a would be hero looking for a cause and part of the embarrassing jerk water politicians from Washington who show up to public events in Birkenstocks and fleece pants and who overturn public mandates to achieve their own goals. It, frankly makes me sick and you're just another one of them.
Get a real job and stop trying to control everyone's life. With a name like Reuven you probably got your ass kicked all the way through school and this is the payback. Have at it.
5 lisadanger // Feb 26, 2010 at 6:31 pm
It's totally true. If morons aren't distracted by phones and texting, they'll still be distracted by applying their makeup or eating cereal form a bowl while driving. (True story, Highland & Queen Anne Ave, I'm looking at YOU, Volvo Man.)
People are just morons either way. A law won't stop them, it'll just give them a higher fine if caught.
6 Anca // Feb 26, 2010 at 7:02 pm
I agree that this makes cellphones scapegoats and probably wastes police resources to pull over every cellphone user instead of just people driving dangerously.
Say I'm not texting, but I'm looking at driving directions on my phone. Do I get pulled over? Am I more of a danger than if I'm holding a piece of paper with driving directions?
Are you really going to make people behave more responsible by threatening to ticket them? Or are they going to want to flaunt the law and see how much they can get away with? Wouldn't you rather that when a driver picks up their phone, or coffee cup, or mascara instead of thinking “are there any cops around” they will be thinking “am I watching the road? am I going to kill someone's kid or grandma?”
Rep. Carlyle, we need a (good) PSA, not a (useless) law.
7 phil // Feb 27, 2010 at 12:38 am
“…they will be thinking “am I watching the road?'
Would be nice.
But until that happens, the threat of being pulled over and ticketed should be a good reminder. Seems to have helped with other driver safety issues.
I would rather see any distracted-driving behavior be a primary offense, but that's not going to happen in the near future.
8 phil // Feb 27, 2010 at 12:52 am
Are you referring to the ONE study that just came out? Pretty limited study and they can't identify actual cellphone users in their accident database.
Even they admit -
“…drivers in jurisdictions with such bans may be switching to hands-free phones because no US state currently bans all drivers from using such phones. In this case crashes wouldn't go down because the risk is about the same, regardless of whether the phones are hand-held or hands-free.”
Sounds like an argument for a complete ban on cellphones.
9 southslope // Feb 27, 2010 at 1:04 am
I'm talking about Washington politicians creating delusional self worth by passing “feel good” legislation that does little more than provide police with another way to extract revenue from citizens. Shame on you. Have a great weekend, Reuven! You've done a really good job this week! Christine must be sooo proud of you!
10 Name // Mar 1, 2010 at 10:01 pm
I am against there being a law controlling cellphone usage while driving a vehicle. Such a law is useless and over reaching of the government into citizens lives. All people, individually, have a responsibility to safety. That includes drivers and pedestrians. Pedestrians have just as much responsibility to make sure drivers see them before heading out into the road, not just assume they will stop as drivers are responsible for looking out for pedestrians. Same for driver to driver.