Should all cities ban cell phones while driving?

NewToy · May 8, 2006

I am also one for less legislation and more personal responsibility. One thing that always bothered me was seat belt laws. I almost always wear mine but I don't want to be legislated into doing so. Why all the seat belt laws going on the books and motorcycle helmet laws coming off? Just think how many lives could be saved if you had to wear a helmet in a car? I don't know if the seat belt would do the same thing on a motorcycle. /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif

John

PineRidge · May 8, 2006

It's like going into a maximum security prison and asking the inmates if they have good morals. I think we might be shocked by the response. 

I would bet that the majority of inmates say they don't even belong in jail, theres been a terrible mistake made.

I got a good idea lets let em out, give em a car & a cell phone to talk on while driving. /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif What could it hurt????

HGM · May 9, 2006

( I had a pharmacist tell me once that the worlds problems should be blamed on the medical industry.
He stated that by advances in medicine, we are allowing people to live that by all rights should have died. Now we are living with the offspring of those people )

There's definitly some truth to that... We've been cheating nature and natural selection for years, and its getting worse.. I totally agree with the motorcyle thought too.. I learned to ride a bike in a congested city area filled with terrible drivers.. I learned quickly that the safety course was a great idea.... I firmly believe that anyone permitted to drive anything, should go through the motorcycle safety course as a prerequisite, regardless of whether the ever intend on riding a bike or not.. It gives you a much better perspective and respect for whats going on arround you..

The fact of the matter is, that if you take a good driver or a bad driver and distract them with dialing a phone or fumbling with it to answer it they will become worse drivers.. Like I said earlier, I use a phone allot with my job and have learned that I am MUCH more aware of my surroundings with the handsfree set.. I too am one ot the guys that think they are good drivers, for many reasons, I believe I am in the top 25% on the road today(could be wrong, but I'm not here to debate that).. I see an uncountable number of morons driving daily in my commutes, swerving, nearing accidents, causing accidents, braking late, cutting people off, slowing traffic, etc... The common denominator- most of them are on the phone(to their ear).. I dont know the difference of the hand and phone to the ear or a handsfree(mentaly) but there is a drastic difference.. I too dissagree with excessive legislation, but the cel phone laws are similar to the smoking bans. Other peoples actions effect me, they can continue these actions, but must be controlled.. I look at it like, you can own a gun, but dont point it at me..

Soundguy · May 9, 2006

( take a good driver or a bad driver and distract them with dialing a phone or fumbling with it to answer it they will become worse drivers.. )

That's the whole point of handsfree. I know many phones that accept voice commands.. and for -years- have had auto answer features, hang up automatically when other party does, speaker phone.. etc. What else do you want? You just have to listen and talk.. which would be going on if you had a passanger in the car anyway. Don't need more laws or more technology.. just need to utilize what is already here. My first analog cell phone back in the early 90's had all of those features i just mentioned...

( I too dissagree with excessive legislation, but the cel phone laws are similar to the smoking bans )

Don't need to ban all cell phones.. just make it where you need handsfree.

You make a blanket ban of cell phones, and eventually you will get to the point where you can be arrested for carrying a cell phone in a car. and that's not a stretch... look at radar detector laws...

Another issue is emergency services... I DO want to be able to have a phone with me for when i have an emergency... how about 'onstar' You ban cell phones in cars.. and GM is gonna have to retrofit lots of vehicles.. that's a big 'backwards step' in progress.

No 'shotgun' legislation is going to take care of the issue of bad drivers...

Soundguy

NewToy · May 9, 2006

Forget the "Onstar" thing. I don't want Big Brother following me around via satellite.
John

dooleysm · May 9, 2006

I base my rating on the fact that in 13 years of driving I've never hit another object, save for the occassional small animal. I've been hit by another driver once. In high school I was waiting in a line of cars to exit the parking lot. The girl in the car in front of me was stopped and talking to someone. She then put her car in reverse and I honked. She took the car out of reverse, then immediately put it back in to reverse and backed into me!

I mowed lawns for years and worked a summer job for 2 years prior to turning 16 and then bought my first truck when I was 17, an old used ranger. Most of my friends and other kids in school were given cars for their 16th birthdays (I lived in a fairly affluent school district). A large percentage of them wrecked their cars and/or had multiple moving violations in 2 years of high school. I never had either. I think that working to pay for my truck made me value it much more than the kids who were given vehicles by their parents. I'm certain that those habits learned at a young age carry over to adulthood.

HGM · May 9, 2006

( ( take a good driver or a bad driver and distract them with dialing a phone or fumbling with it to answer it they will become worse drivers.. )

That's the whole point of handsfree. I know many phones that accept voice commands.. and for -years- have had auto answer features, hang up automatically when other party does, speaker phone.. etc. What else do you want? You just have to listen and talk.. which would be going on if you had a passanger in the car anyway. Don't need more laws or more technology.. just need to utilize what is already here. My first analog cell phone back in the early 90's had all of those features i just mentioned...

( I too dissagree with excessive legislation, but the cel phone laws are similar to the smoking bans )

Don't need to ban all cell phones.. just make it where you need handsfree.

You make a blanket ban of cell phones, and eventually you will get to the point where you can be arrested for carrying a cell phone in a car. and that's not a stretch... look at radar detector laws...

Another issue is emergency services... I DO want to be able to have a phone with me for when i have an emergency... how about 'onstar' You ban cell phones in cars.. and GM is gonna have to retrofit lots of vehicles.. that's a big 'backwards step' in progress.

No 'shotgun' legislation is going to take care of the issue of bad drivers...

Soundguy )

 I think you may have taken the title a little too literaly, the article doesnt say anything about a complete ban of phones, just mandating that they use handsfree.. 

 Detroit, MI (AHN) - The Detroit City Council has approved an ordinance that would ban the use of hand-held cell phones while driving anywhere in the city limits. 

 Detroit Police Second Deputy Chief James Tate said the ordinance would be enforced if Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick signs it. The ordinance would allow hands-free cell phones and would exempt drivers making emergency calls

flwiii · May 9, 2006

I want to congratulate you on making it through the dangerous driving ages of 17 - 25 without any incidents. This is a feat to be commended.

Soundguy · May 9, 2006

I wasn't refering to the article.. but rather to the messages and title of the message here.. that is re: 'ban on cell phones while driving'.

Soundguy

flwiii · May 9, 2006

Perhaps, if cities would just enforce the laws we have with more diligence, such as the impeding traffic laws, unsafe lane change etc. I have seen all too often on the freeways people doing these things with the highway patrol sitting on the roadside and they don't even get stopped. There could be notations by the officer as to the cause of the traffic impedence such as "cell phone use", or "applying makeup while driving" etc. After several of these type tickets, they could restrict the persons license to revoke the privilege to use a cell while driving or revoke the license all together. This would only affect then, the driver who can't drive while under the influence of the cell phone or mascara pencil.

The city of Scottsdale went a step further as far as speeders go on a stretch of the Loop 101. They installed those photo radar cameras. The hightway patrol could not stop people from driving speeds of from 85 to 120 miles per hour on the 101, so in came the cameras. It is amazing how sanely people drive through that part of Scottsdale. There are those revolters though, one girl that was caught on camera about 3 times doing over 100 MPH. She had been braggin to her friend about it and now she is going to do jail time for the infractions.