Last week, State Rep. Keith Hall of Kentucky turned thumbs down on a plan to ban text messaging while driving. He voted against HB 43 in the House Transportation Committee. The measure succeeded, though, and went before the full House on Feb. 4. This time, Hall voted yes with the zeal of a recent convert. "I've had a change of heart," he told the House. That's because the night before the vote, his wife reportedly reached for her ringing cell phone and plowed into another vehicle. “I heard the sirens go off, and my cell phone rang and they said, ‘Your wife has just had a serious traffic … [Read more...]
Governor reaches out to drivers — by texting
January 31, 2010 by Leave a Comment
Props to Gov. M. Jodi Rell for her plan to toughen Connecticut's existing ban on driving and talking on handheld cell phones. She's pushing for a text messaging ban, too. No doubt Rell is one of the good guys on this issue. But, get a load of the unfortunate wording in this invitation from the gov's official web site: Dear Friends: If you are like me, there are days when you are on the road all day, away from your computer and with limited access to e-mail. However, you want to be the first to know of the important news ... from my office. Now you can. Sign up today to get text messages … [Read more...]
‘Name and shame’ cell phone violators
January 8, 2010 by Leave a Comment
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 … [Read more...]
Distracted driving progress cited by NYT
January 4, 2010 by 1 Comment
"I’m on a rampage about this, and I’m not going to let up," U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood says of the dangerous practice of text messaging while driving. Rampage on, Ray. LaHood's comments were reported Jan. 3 in a New York Times article, "Bills to Curb Distracted Driving Gain Momentum." The article adds nothing new to the conversation about distracted driving, but contains a few items of interest. "Proposals (to curb distracted driving) are being met with less resistance than in years past from legislators, and are enjoying newfound industry support," the article says. Reporter … [Read more...]
‘Cellphone Madness’: Dumb but fun
December 6, 2009 by Leave a Comment
These college kids from Toronto are clever enough to make this video but dumb enough to think cell phone driving laws don't work. Pretty funny, though. (Hat tip to reader James for finding this.) … [Read more...]
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