Election hot button: distracted driving

Distracted driving has yet to emerge as an election issue in the U.S., but it’s making news on the campaign trail in Canada’s New Brunswick province.

The current Liberal government has come under fire once again for its foot-dragging in enacting specific distracted driving laws. New Brunswick remains one of two Canadian provinces without laws against text messaging while driving.

Political Conservatives have said several times during their campaign for the fall election that they’ll promptly enact distracted driving legislation if victorious in the fall.

The issue hit the front burner Sept. 6 with the death of a young man on the Trans-Canada Highway. The driver was sending a text message when he lost control of his car and crashed into a rock wall, a passenger told police.

Progressive Conservative Leader David Alward charged that the Liberals “have had an opportunity for the last few years to bring (cell phone and texting laws) forward. We’ve asked many times the minister what his position was on it.”

Liberal Leader Shawn Graham vowed that there were would be “a comprehensive piece of legislation to deal with texting, to deal with cellphones while driving and a number of other distractions that can occur behind the wheel.”

CBC News noted that the Public Safety Department had long resisted a New Brunswick ban on cellphone use while driving, focusing instead on public education. At one point it announced plans to see how distracted driving laws worked out in other provinces before taking any action.

Alward told the Times & Transcript that “New Brunswick is one of the last jurisdictions that still allows it. It is unsafe and for the protection of all our citizens, it’s necessary to do.” His party brought up the issue over the summer.

A local politician, David Kelly of Fredericton, recently asked: “What is it gonna take? “Is it gonna take a certain ration of accidents? What do we have to do here in New Brunswick? What else is it gonna take for us to go that next step?”

New Brunswick’s general election is set for Sept. 27.

Alberta also has no laws against use of handheld cell phones and text messaging. The government has said it will debate the issue this fall.

U.N. mobilizes against distracted driving

Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has thrown the U.N.’s weight behind a global push to stamp out distracted driving.

Ban also has ordered the U.N.’s 40,000 staffers to stop texting while behind the wheel of the organization’s vehicles.

Ban said at a New York gathering for the global distracted driving campaign: “We are seeing a major emerging challenge of driver distraction, mainly by using mobile phones. Together we have a message to all drivers of the world — don’t let using a mobile for a few seconds make you and others immobile for life.”

(Photo, from left: Jennifer Smith, Ban Ki-moon, Susan Rice)

U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, an avowed hardliner on texting and cell phoning by drivers, said at Wednesday’s event:

“Distracted driving isn’t just a deadly epidemic in the U.S. — it’s a threat around the world. We believe our nations can do more to stop distracted driving if we work together. 

“The Obama administration stands ready to work with other countries so that we can put an end to dangerous driving behaviors and make the world’s roads safer for everyone,” LaHood said.

Last fall, President Obama banned texting by federal employees while they’re driving government vehicles. (Text continued below.)

Russian Ambassador Vitaly Churkin noted that distracted driving was a focus of November’s Global Ministerial Conference on Road Safety in Moscow.

“Russia is ready to engage with the United States and other interested countries in defining the ways to mainstream (the fight against distracted driving) into global road safety cooperation agenda,” Churkin said.

The “global anti-distracted driving effort” wasn’t detailed by the speakers, but it “has an active online component that will allow other countries, safety organizations, and anti-distraction campaigns to share news and research as well as multimedia and other information,” according to a DOT release.

Thirty-two countries — including Russia, Brazil, France, Japan, Jordan, Spain, Taiwan, and the United Kingdom — have passed laws that restrict drivers’ use of handheld devices. Portugal has outlawed all phone use by drivers. (“Some of the world’s nations are far ahead of us on this,” LaHood wrote on his DOT blog.)

Ban said in some companies, 90 percent of drivers used mobile phones.

No statistics were available on the global cost of distracted driving, but the DOT said vehicle crashes around the world claim 1.3 million lives each year — roughly one death every 30 seconds.

U.S. Ambassador Susan Rice said, “Texting while driving isn’t a harmless little habit. It’s a killer. It affects every nation on Earth. The suffering it causes is terribly direct and immediate—lives lost for no reason, futures shattered in an instant. But its toll is truly global. So this is a problem that needs global attention and action.”

Also on hand was an emotional Jennifer Smith, co-founder and president of the survivors activist group FocusDriven. She spoke of how her mother was killed by a young man who ran a red light while using his cell phone.

“It is a human problem affecting the entire world. … These victims are real people. These are human lives being taken for a phone call.”

Alberta distracted driving law unveiled

Alberta would no longer be “Canada’s traffic-safety donkey” under long-delayed legislation that would tackle distracted driving.

The province’s Tory government called the plan “some of the most comprehensive distracted driving legislation in Canada.”

Bill 16, introduced April 14, would outlaw drivers’ use of handheld cell phones (hands-free OK), as well as PDAs and other handheld electronic communications devices. Texting would be included in forbidden activities.

Alberta’s distracted driving legislation includes a ban on “personal grooming” while driving. While frequently cited (by dubious lawmakers) during distracted driving debates in North America, this is one of the few measures to seriously propose such a ban.

“Drivers can be distracted behind the wheel for many reasons other than talking on their phone,” said MLA Art Johnston, who introduced the bill. “This legislation goes beyond a simple hand-held cellphone ban.”

Also prohibited for drivers would be non-commercial use of CB radios, writing, drawing, sketching and non-transportation-related video screen watching.

(Update) A day later, the government raised the possibility that enforcement might be secondary if the law is approved — meaning police need another reason to pull over drivers before issuing a citation.

Alberta had been criticized by safety groups and some legislators for dragging its feet on distracted driving legislation while other provinces took action.

The Calgary Sun editorialized in January: “The Stelmach government keeps dangling the carrot (of distracted driving laws), and then yanking it away. … Alberta … is set to become Canada’s traffic-safety donkey once again.” The paper cited fear of drops in popularity polls as one reason for the delays.

Alberta Premier Ed Stelmach cited a “busy agenda” as the reason no distracted driving legislation was proposed for 2009.

Strathcona County (east of capital Edmonton) has the province’s only law against driving while cell phoning and text messaging.

MLA Johnston, Calgary-Hays, is a former policeman who has been pushing for distracted driving for years. “I appreciate the great input of law enforcement and traffic safety stakeholders that has led to the introduction of this legislation,” he said. “This is a complex issue and I believe we have found a good balance between enforcement and safety.”

Aussies: ‘Don’t be a dickhead’

The government of Victoria, Australia, has an official message for its citizens: “Don’t be a dickhead. Don’t use your phone.”

The opposition party and a loose coalition of teachers, moralists and conservatives aren’t amused, saying the driving safety campaign sends a bad message to the state’s youth and is an affront to educators.

Finance and Water minister Tim Holding says, “Whatever it is, indeed it’s already promoted debate.”

“Our road safety campaigns in Victoria have always provoked debate and discussion and sometimes it’s because of the graphic images that have been presented, sometimes it’s the use of humor, controversy,” Holding told (the Australian) ABC News.

The VicRoads ads seek to communicate with young drivers through their online social networks; “This is about talking directly with young Victorians and passing on the road safety message through their social network,” said Roads Minister Tim Pallas. “Viral ads spread through word-of-mouth and people connecting with each other online.”

The opposition party’s transportation guru called the off-color campaign an “appalling” message to send to children and an affront to the teachers who have to deal with them daily. One of the ads seeking to prevent Australian distracted driving shows a girl flipping off the narrator who appeals for cell phone-free driving, while another devoted to seatbelt use features a young geek hammering a PC in anger (video below).

They actually have someone called a respect minister down there, and he gets the last word here: “Anybody who puts somebody else’s life at risk, or their own life, by the way they drive or conduct themselves on the road is no doubt going to be called a lot of things,” he said.

‘Name and shame’ cell phone violators

Steady, cell phone chatterers. The Essex Chronicle in England has decided to “name and shame” drivers who are violating traffic laws by using mobile phones behind the wheel.

A reporter accompanied local police as they cited drivers for chatting and texting while motoring. The newspaper then printed the perps’ names and photos.

The unusual tactic sometimes is used by the media to humiliate prostitutes’ johns, but the cell phone suspects didn’t seem all that repentant.

“I don’t like people telling me how to live my life,” said second-time offender Gemma Dean. When asked if she felt like she was endangering others by cell phoning while behind the wheel, she replied: “I don’t really care.”

At least one fellow caught one-handed admitted: “I feel a bit stupid now.”

An online commenter pointed out that these are alleged offenses. “The Essex Chronicle are NOT the police or a magistrates court!”

In any event the cell phone chronicles could be good for circulation. “Buy this week’s Chronicle for more on the issue and to see if you were pictured on the phone behind the wheel by our photographers,” the paper’s web site urged.

Ontario cell phone, texting ban begins

Ontario’s law banning the use of handheld electronic devices by drivers is now in effect.

Enforcement of the province-wide ban started Monday, but the fines that could sap violators of $500 (CAN) won’t kick in until Feb. 1, 2010.

“This law is about keeping your eyes on the road and your hands on the wheel,” Transportation Minister Jim Bradley said at a news conference in Toronto on Monday. “We need to prevent these unnecessary road accidents and I believe this law will do just that.”

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

Violations include talking, texting or emailing on cell phones or PDAs while behind the wheel. Cell phones may be used if the driver pulls off the road, but not while stopped in traffic.

Laptop computers and entertainment devices such as DVD players and game units are covered as well. The law prohibits viewing of any electronic screen “unrelated to the driving task such as laptops or DVD players while driving,” Ontario’s Ministry of Transportation says.

GPS units are exempted if they are mounted to a dashboard and iPods must be connected to the auto’s speaker system.

Read Ontario’s complete Rules for Hand-Held Wireless and Entertainment Devices.

There are no points charged to the license under Ontario’s new law, but drivers who endanger others while using electronic devices could face 6 points and fines up to $1,000.

The Legislature unanimously passed the plan on April 22, 2009. Premier Dalton McGuinty had opposed the ban but gave in to growing support. The intent was to get the law in place before the onset of winter driving.

Newfoundland and Labrador have long outlawed use of handheld cell phones while driving. Quebec and Nova Scotia joined the club this year. British Columbia is about to enact similar sanctions.

Saskatchewan and Alberta are in various stages of enacting bans against drivers using handheld cell phones and text messaging.

Read the Ontario cell phone and texting bill 118 (PDF).

Related content:

Ontario reins in handheld devices

Ontario targets cell phones, text messages

Canadian cell phone law updates

International distracted driving roundup

Distracted driving news from around the globe. (Does not include the EU member states or Canada.) View the European distracted driving news page and the Australia & New Zealand cell phone laws roundup.

India is moving toward a ban on mobile phone use while driving. The Union Cabinet (of ministers) on March 1, 2012, approved a package of safety-related changes to the Motor Vehicle Act that includes the distracted driving plan. Fines would be RS 500 (first offense, about $10 US) and then up to RS 5,000. The legislation moves to the Parliament.

The U.S. Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (Saipan, mostly) is considering legislation that would outlaw texting and the use of handheld cell phones while driving. The House Judiciary Committee recommended approval of House Bill 17-143 on Feb. 7, 2012. Rep. Stanley Torres, Ind-Saipan, is the sponsor. The measure also would ban all cell phone use by teen drivers. Fines: $50, then $100.

Also in the western Pacific, Guam has banned handheld cell phone use by drivers. The island already prohibited texting & driving. Sen. Tom Ada filed the Guam distracted driving legislation Dec. 14, 2011, and it was voted in unanimously Feb. 17. The acting governor signed the plan into law March 1. Fines $100 (first offense), $500 (subsequent) and $1,000/possible license loss if an accident results from the distraction. Commercial vehicles have a temporary 30-day exemption from the law. (Guam, a U.S. territory, decided to mirror the recent federal regulations regarding some commercial vehicles.)

Taking action against “a dreadful phenomenon,” Bermuda has outlawed use of handheld cell phones and other wireless communications devices while driving. Videos also are prohibited from viewing TV/DVD screens. Police said they wrote more than 100 tickets under the new law in its first month. Fines range from $500 to $1,000. MPs unanimously approved the measure Dec. 2, 2011. The government issued a detailed explanation of the new distracted driving law Jan. 12. The regulations are part of the Traffic Offences (Penalties) Amendment Act 2011. Bermuda is a British territory located about 650 miles off North Carolina. The United Kingdom banned handheld cell phone use while driving in 2003.

Cayman Islands lawmakers approved a new traffic law Nov. 20, 2011. The legislation includes a ban on handheld cell phone use while driving. The law requires hands-free devices to operate with only one button, a rule that apparently targets text messaging. Drivers are permitted to use their handheld cell phones if stopped in a traffic jam or at stop lights. The Royal Cayman Islands Police Service has been pushing for a ban on handheld cell phones, although they’d prefer a total ban. The ban was removed from the Traffic Bill earlier in 2011 but was revised for the final vote. Police currently use careless-driving laws against drivers whose cell phone use is endangering others.

The Emirate of Abu Dhabi struggles with one of the highest rates of road fatalities in the world. Police reported that a recent three-day outage of Blackberry messaging service coincided with a 40 percent drop in traffic accidents. “Absolutely nothing has happened in the past week in terms of killings on the road,” the police chief said. “People are slowly starting to realize the dangers of using their phone while driving. The roads became much safer when BlackBerry stopped working.”

The Philippines’ Department of Justice has ruled that distracted driving can be considered a violation of law, punishable for that infraction alone, or for the damages done to others. The DOJ said May 30, 2011, that distracted driving occurs while “operating a motor vehicle inattentively on account of various activities not related to driving.” Local laws against “texting or calling while driving” already are in effect in Sagada and Roxas City.

India already bans the use of handheld cell phones while driving, with penalties running INR 2,000 (about $40). Now, the government reportedly is debating a plan to prohibit drivers from using hands-free cell phones and Bluetooth gadgets such as wireless headsets.

The Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) will consider bans on text messaging and handheld cell phone use by drivers. Rep. Stanley Torres, Ind-Saipan, introduced HB 17-143, the “Commonwealth Wireless Telephone Restrictions in Vehicles Safety Act of 2011,” on Jan. 13. Fines: $50 (first violation) then $100. Penalties double for taxi and bus drivers.

Trinidad and Tobago’s ban on handheld cell phones went into effect Feb. 2, 2011. The Motor Vehicles Amendment Bill was approved by Cabinet in October 2010 and then by the Parliament. Enactment was delayed a month and fines apparently have been lowered. Fines are now set at $1,500 TTD (about $235 U.S.), according to transportation minister Jack Warner, who urged motorists to use the extra time to get used to not using handheld cell phones.

Jamaica’s road safety director expects a ban on drivers’ use of cell phones by August 2011. The law would include other devices, such as portable DVD players. The Ministry of Transport and Works proposed the new distracted driving rules at the end of 2010.

“We have no doubt that any legislation banning the use of cellphones while driving will attract a lot of resistance in Jamaica,” the Observer editorialized Jan. 27, 2011

Bermuda has a twist on the usual distracted driving issues. Shadow Transport Minister Michael Fahy explains: “The phenomenon of the use of cell phones on bikes seems to be almost unique to Bermuda, where we constantly see people texting whilst driving their bikes, or a phone shoved in a helmet. It is only a matter of time before serious injury or death results from this poor driving habit.”

European cell phone, texting roundup

Almost half of German drivers say they use cell phones while driving. That compares with 6 percent of U.K. drivers, according to a European motor safety poll. Ford Motor Company commissioned the survey 4,300 drivers from Spain, Italy, France, Germany and Britain. n Italy, 14 percent of the respondents said they had text messaged while driving.

Almost all EU nations prohibit use of handheld electronic devices while driving. “This survey clearly demonstrates the urgent need for us all to improve our concentration levels behind the wheel,” said Stuart Southgate of Ford Europe’s Automotive Safety Office. Six in 10 motorists told the researchers that they weren’t sure they would pass their driver’s license test if taken again.

In Denmark, the Accident Investigation Board (AIB) is seeking seeks a total ban on cell phone use while driving. “We see that drivers sit with their new smartphones while driving and use them like a laptop computer and thus look away from the traffic,” AIB chairman Sven Krarup Nielsen said July 19, 2011. Danish law currently prohibits the use of handheld cell phones while driving, but permits use of mobiles with hands-free listening devices. The vehicle safety board is lobbying Parliament for the change.

In Finland, drivers who can’t stop talking on their cell phones now face suspensions of their licenses. The new Act on Driving Licenses, which took effect June 1, 2011, gives local police the authority to suspend a driver’s license if the cell phone violation is committed three times in a single year or four times over a period of two years. Suspensions range from one to six months under the new Finnish distracted driving penalties.

(View the International distracted driving news page.)

In Ireland, 8,500 drivers were prosecuted for electronic distracted driving violations in the year’s first quarter, a 10 percent hike over the same period in 2010. Almost 100,000 Irish drivers have received penalty points for texting or using handheld cell phones since 2006, and a additional 20,000 were just cited and fined. Dublin had the most scofflaws, Ireland’s national police reported.

Brits brush off cell phone law: British drivers are pretty much ignoring the 7-year-old law against handheld cell phone use while behind the wheel, a survey found. As many as 81 percent of drivers use cell phones without the required hands-free kit, according to Good Mobile Phones’ survey of 1,859 motorists aged 17 and over. 44 percent admitted to texting while driving, while 24 percent said they accessed social networking sites such as Facebook.

A British teenager has been sentenced to incarceration for 2 1/2 yearrs for killing a grandmother while reading a text message. She faced as much as 14 years in prison for “causing death by dangerous driving.” Keisha Wall killed 63-year-old Christine Lyon in early 2010, a Reading jury found. Police said she received a text message seconds before the crash. Wall denied the charges and the victim’s family said she never apologized. Read the full story about the texting U.K. teen sentenced to prison.

Total cell phone ban?: The European Transport Safety Council has proposed that all cell phone use be banned for EU drivers. The safety alliance urged “clear and strict” laws banning mobile phone use while on the road.

All EU nations except Sweden have banned handheld cell phone use while driving but allow hands-free operation. Ten of the 27 EU member states specifically prohibit texting while driving.

The European Transport Safety Council (ETSC) also recommended in a December 2010 report — Minimising In-Vehicle Distractions — that employers ban all cell phone use by their employees.

The ETSC is a Brussels-based umbrella group of 43 organizations dedicated to the reduction of the number and severity of transport crashes in Europe.

Scotland is cracking down on drivers who use smart phones. Roadway law enforcement Chief Superintendent Charlie Common said in November: “The use of any distraction device, including smart phones, is illegal and carries the same penalties associated with making a call whilst driving. … We are committed to stopping those motorists who continue to ignore the safety warnings and risk their life and the lives of others.”

In Sweden, nearly 10,000 people lost their licenses for distracted driving in 2010, an increase of 12 percent. Most of those penalized were distracted by cell phones and GPS systems.

Looks like Sweden has nabbed its first text-messaging driver. A Falkenberg man crashed into a pole and ran over a ditch before coming to rest on the sidewalk. The cops closed, being in the area on an unrelated case. He apparently will be the first person in Sweden to be charged as a result of texting while driving. (Sweden is one of the few areas in Europe where cell phone use is allowed while operating a motor vehicle.)

English road safety group Brake is pushing for an expansion of the country’s ban on drivers’ use of handheld cell phones, with hands-free mobiles outlawed as well. “It’s time that our politicians took note and put an end to the ridiculous situation where using a hand-held mobile is banned, but using hands-free isn’t,” said Ellen Booth, campaigns officer.

The U.K. Home Office reports that in 2009, about 116,000 tickets were handed out for mobile phone use while driving. The number is off 30% from two years ago, the Telegraph reported May 5, 2010. Meanwhile, cell phone use by motorists was up 27%. A spokesman for Brake, the road safety group, said: “This is clearly a law which is being flouted and isn’t being enforced to a degree that actually makes people think that they are going to get caught.”

In 2009 there were 454 deaths and serious injuries linked to distracted driving in the United Kingdom, according to the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents. About 2,500 less-important accidents occurred as a result of distracted behaviors as well.

Police in Scotland wrote 180 tickets for driving and using wireless devices on Feb. 25, 2010, as a one-day national crackdown on distracted driving. Among those ticketed: A bus driver reading text messages while crossing through a city center.

Great Britain’s Labour party deputy leader was fined £350 after pleading guilty to backing her car into a parked vehicle while talking on a handheld cell phone. She also had 3 points charged against her license with the Jan. 9, 2010, sentence. The Crown Prosecution Service said Harriet Harman initially was charged with driving without “due care and attention” and using a handheld mobile telephone. The cell phone charge was dropped, which drew criticism from the road safety group Brake. She faced fines of over 5,000 pounds and nine points on her license for the South London crash.

Serbia: The Law on Safety in Traffic went into effect Dec. 10, 2009. The Serbian ban on cell phone use while driving brings fines of €60. Punishments of up to €250 and some jail time (five to 10 days) may be imposed if an accident is in the equation, according to the web site Balkan Insight. As many as 20 percent of accidents in the country involve cell phone use, police say.

A close shave with Ontario cell phone ban

Ontario’s government ombudsman is taking heat for distracted driving — because he was busy making a tattle-tale video of an extreme case of distracted driving.

Andre Martin, the province watchdog, noticed a driver ahead of him using an electric razor to shave his head. Martin whipped out his iPhone and made a video of the outrage, posting it as an example of how motorists will do just about anything behind a wheel, the Toronto Sun reported. Martin was stopped at a light at the time.

Unfortunately for Martin, his actions were in violation of the Ontario’s new hands-free law, at least in theory. The ban on using cell phones, cameras and texting devices has been approved but the cops won’t be writing tickets until fall.

The Ontario Safety League president wasn’t a fan of Martin’s civic vigilance. “He may want to review his protocols going forward,” he told the Sun.

“If this had occurred when the new law was in, there would have been two offenders.”

Other behaviors cited in the new law are emailing, watching DVDs, fooling with MP3 players and video gaming. No mention of head-buzzing, yet.

Phoning in other drivers’ antics appears to be a popular pastime in Ontario, with a third of impaired-motorist reports coming from fellow citizens.

The tattlers will be plenty busy in the fall, as the ban on handheld cell phones and texting goes into effect.

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.

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