Pennsylvania House leans on Philly

Pennsylvania state legislators aren’t stopping at voting against cell phone driving bills. Now, they’re trying to force Philadelphia to abandon its recently adopted ban against handheld cell phones while driving.

State Rep. Richard Geist, R-Blair, leads the charge against the public-safety rebels in Philly. His amendment to the state teenage driving legislation HB 67 would cut off Philadelphia from most of its share of gas-tax revenue and other highway funding if the city goes ahead with the local ban.

HB 67 was approved in the House on Monday. It includes a ban on cell phones for young drivers with restricted permits. The House voted down an amendment that would have banned the cell phones, but settled instead for a watery distracted driving provision.

The Philly ban, which includes gabbing and texting on bicycles and skateboards, would be significantly more restrictive, of course.

Geist, a bigwig on the House Transportation Committee, said: “You can’t have separate highway laws in Philadelphia and Erie.”

The Philly ban on all drivers’ use of handheld cell phones and text messaging devices goes into effect Wednesday (April 29) unless the mayor vetoes it immediately. A spokesman for the hizzoner said he would indeed sign it into law.

Ontario reins in handheld devices

Ontario drivers who like to yak and text on handheld cell phones have about six months to cure themselves of the habits.

(Update: The Ontario ban on handheld electronics for drivers went into effect Monday, Oct. 26. This post is about the bill passing.)

The Legislature gave final approval Wednesday to a ban on texting and using handheld devices behind the wheel. Prohibited activities include emailing, watching DVDs, fooling with MP3 players and video gaming.

Drivers may continue to use cell phones if a hands-free device such as a Bluetooth headset
is employed.

“What we’re trying to do is to avoid distractions while people are driving — those distractions being caused, in this case, by electronic devices that are hand-held,” said Transportation Minister Jim Bradle.

Fine would be as much as $500 (CAN). There are no points charged to the license under this law, but drivers who endanger others while using electronic devices could face 6 points and fines up to $1,000.

Premier Dalton McGuinty had opposed the plan, but it gained momentum since introduction last fall. Local media reported that the intent of the handheld device ban is to get the law in place before the onset of winter driving.

The provinces of Quebec, Nova Scotia and Newfoundland and Labrador all have adopted bans on driving and using electronic devices.

Police beat: Cell phones, texting & trouble

Deaths, injuries and court sentences resulting from drivers who allegedly were chatting on cell phones or text messaging. These reports from police and the courts were gathered in the past 10 days or so.

HOUSTON — Police say Chanton B. Jenkins was talking on his cell phone when he lost control of the car, plunging it into a rain-filled ditch and killing five children. Jenkins was charged with four counts of intoxication manslaughter in the crash. (From AP)

YORK, Pa. – A south-central Pennsylvania driver accused of text-messaging just before a crash that killed a pedestrian has been sentenced to prison. Brian Widmayer pleaded no contest to homicide by vehicle and careless driving resulting in an unintentional death. (philly.com)

REDDING, Calif. — A woman who slammed into a line of vehicles while text messaging on her cell phone was sentenced to six years in prison for killing a woman whose car was rear-ended and exploded in flames. Investigators said Deborah Matis-Engle was text messaging when she slammed into vehicles stopped at a construction zone. (Mercury News)

NEWPORT BEACH, Calif. — An Orange County driver who was allegedly text messaging when his vehicle struck and killed a pedestrian in a crosswalk pleaded not guilty Wednesday. Martin Burt Kuehl, 41, was charged with one felony count of vehicular manslaughter by unlawful act with gross negligence. “I didn’t see her in the crosswalk,” Kuehl said in court Wednesday. (NBC Los Angeles)

COLLINS, Ohio – A LifeFlight helicopter transported a Wakeman teenager to a Cleveland hospital Sunday after she dropped her cell phone while heading east on Ohio 18 and crashed her car while reaching for it. (Norwalk Reflector)

SHREVEPORT, La. — A woman who was text-messaging on her cell phone drove into the back of a Shreveport city bus as it was stopped to let a passenger off. Six people on the bus complained of injuries and were treated. Police suspected the driver had been drinking. (KTBS)

Philadelphia banishes handheld cells

The Philadelphia City Council voted unanimously Thursday to prohibit drivers from using cell phones unless a hands-free device is attached.

The mayor promises to quickly sign the legislation, which includes a ban on text messaging while behind the wheel. (Update: Mayor Mike Nutter signed the legislation April 30, ignoring threats from state lawmakers.)

“Dialing a phone number or sending a text message while driving will no longer be tolerated in the City of Philadelphia and I predict lives will be saved as a result,” said Councilman Frank Rizzo Jr.

The Philadephia prohibitions on handheld cell phones extend to bicyclists, motorcyclists, skaters and skateboarders. Fines for using handheld phones or text messaging begin at $150 ($75 if paid in 10 days) and top out at $300. Violations will not be considered moving offenses, meaning no points or insurance problems.

“People on their phones are drunk on technology,” said the legislation’s sponsor, Councilman Bill Green.

Nightmare on texting street

Florida’s Dori Slosberg Foundation is running this text messaging safety PSA in South Florida movie theaters. Pretty hokey, until it’s chilling.

Cleveland, Albany say no to texting

Cleveland has become the latest big city to prohibit text messaging by drivers. Meanwhile, Albany County, N.Y., has prohibited texting behind the wheel.

Both bans come in reaction to a perceived lack of action at the state level. Cleveland’s City Council also called on Ohio’s lawmakers to adopt a similar ban on driving and texting.

The lead legislator on the Albany plan, Christopher Higgins, called texting while driving “an epidemic in this country.”

The Cleveland ban takes effect 90 days after the (supportive) mayor signs the legislation. Fines range from $150-$500. The Albany County ban begins Aug. 1 and carries a $150 fine.

The Saratogan newspaper had this to say about Albany’s new texting law: “No one can defend the practice of sending a text message while driving. But making a law with a $150 price tag if convicted will do more to add to the municipalities’ coffers than it will to make the roadways safer.”

Maryland bans text messaging by drivers

Maryland’s governor has signed the text-messaging legislation forwarded to him by the state Senate. It takes effect Oct. 1, 2009.

(This story originally filed March 2009.)

Maryland’s ban on texting by all drivers does not include the act of reading messages, thanks to an amendment tacked on by the House. This is intended to make enforcement easier, since police in theory won’t pull over drivers who are just reading phone numbers. Read about the 2010 legislation to close the loophole.

Gov. Martin O’Malley signed the Maryland texting ban on April 7, 2009. The governor had indicated he’d sign either version of the Maryland texting ban that emerged from the legislature.

Maryland joins neighbors Virginia and the District of Columbia in the no-texting-while-driving club.

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Tennessee texting bill grilled

Tennessee legislators continue to dance around the issue of text messaging while behind the wheel.

(Update: Tennessee Gov. Phil Bredesen signed a texting ban into law on May 13, 2009.)

A month back, opponents of a Tennessee texting ban called for the attorney general to clarify if the dangerous practice was already illegal under state law (it was, sort of). Now they’re reheating a tired and familiar argument.

Rep. John Lundberg, R-Bristol, was grilled about his HB 107 on Tuesday. A fellow Republican asked why he was singling out texting while driving as opposed to, say, “eating a bowl of chili or a cheeseburger.”

“Frankly 90-some percent of us don’t have a hamburger strapped and attached to our waist,” Lundberg replied.

The House Transportation Committee then voted to advance the proposal to the House finance panel. It added a provision requiring the roads department to post signs advising motorists about the text messaging ban.

Meanwhile, the wireless trade group CTIA reported that Americans served up more than a trillion text messages in 2008.

New offense: Drunken Driving & Texting

From Albany, N.Y., home of the Legislature that can’t figure out text messaging and driving don’t mix:

“(The officer) asked the driver, Amanda Murphy of Amsterdam, why she was stopped in the middle of the road with her car running. Murphy allegedly said she was sending a text message. She was charged with driving while intoxicated. (From the Times Union)

From Waupun, Wisc.:

“A 23-year-old Madison man, who police said was apparently distracted while text messaging behind the wheel, was taken into custody after his vehicle smashed into a parked car. … The man was arrested on charges of inattentive driving and driving while intoxicated.” (From fdlreporter.com)

Looks like they missed April Fool’s Day by thismuch.