LaHood considering outright phone cell ban in cars

[babylonsister]

http://thehill.com/blogs/hillicon-valley/technology/123637-lahood-proposes-outright-cell-ban-in-cars

LaHood considering outright phone cell ban in cars
By Sara Jerome - 10/11/10 11:31 AM ET


Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood has heightened his rhetoric in the distracted driving debate, proposing in an interview with Bloomberg that an outright ban on cell phone use in vehicles may be appropriate.

He said drivers are distracted by any in-vehicle gadget use, even the hands-free kind, and research may lead him to encourage states to ban the devices from cars, according to the report.

“I don’t want people talking on phones, having them up to their ear or texting while they’re driving,” LaHood said the interview. “We need a lot better research on other distractions.”

That includes more research on Bluetooth-enabled hands-free calls and the in-car systems, LaHood said.

Hands-free devices, which can enable voice-activated texting and calling, are a "cognitive distraction," LaHood said. He could encourage a ban on hands-free electronics if research suggests that's necessary, a department spokeswoman told Bloomberg.

Christopher King, a telecommunications analyst at Stifel Nicolaus, said an outright vehicle cell phone ban could be tough to implement, Bloomberg reported.

“It’s so ingrained at this point, I think banning that would be extremely difficult, bordering on folly,” King said. “There would be no legitimate, public support for an outright ban.”

[WillParkinson]

1. This is a good idea...

Ban the Bluetooth devices. Then ban having passengers in the car or just forbid them to speak. That'll work.

[Ilsa]

3. Duct tape the passengers' mouths. Yeah, that'll fix it! nt

[KurtNYC]

2. the local police blotter here is full of citations for "possession"

of pot which one could not see (or smell) until the driver is pulled over for something else. On the other there are no names or mention of anyone being cited for violating the hands free law.

The current law is not enforced so perhaps THAT would be a good place to start. If people talking and texting on phones were treated as though they were smoking a J or slamming Tequila shots then we would know whether the current law is enough.

[Xithras]

4. Arbitrary and capricious

As many will point out, a car is full of distractions. Radios, passengers, GPS devices, AC & heater controls, etc, etc.

I mentioned a number of months back that I was pulled over for changing tracks on my iPod while driving down the road. California law bans texting and talking on the phone while driving, and the cop thought I had a phone in my hand. As it turns out, it's illegal to have an iPhone in your hand while driving, but it's perfectly legal to have an iPod in your hand while doing the same thing.

Unless you're going to legislate, device by device, what is allowed and what isn't, this type of thing isn't going to work. The line, to any sane person, should be drawn at using any handheld electronic device. If you don't have to hold it, then it's no more distracting than any other device (or person) in the car.

I challenge anyone to seriously claim that talking on my cars built in handsfree BlueTooth is more distracting than listening to my five year old having a hysterical temper tantrum in the back seat while I drive down the road. Are we going to ban kids next?

[wilt the stilt]

5. $500.00 tickets will change

an ingrained system real fast.

[FiveGoodMen]

12. Don't stop there! Make it five million.

And throw them in jail for life if they can't pay.

Fuck those drivers!

If we're going to impose our will on them, let's not muck around.

[wilt the stilt]

16. Sweden- get caught driving drunk- lose your license for life

no DUI problem in Sweden

[FiveGoodMen]

21. Wouldn't it be cheaper and easier just to kill them?

[wilt the stilt]

23. your sarcasm

is juvenile

[MindPilot]

24. Cal-Trans should set up roadside execution units

you know, to set an example.

[RKP5637]

6. Make everyone including the driver sit in the back seat or trunk, that should solve the problem. n/t

[madrchsod]

7. i agree with him but it`s never going to happen.

remember when the right wing starts crying nanny state...ray is a republican.

[customerserviceguy]

8. How about a test

for those who wish to use them? Sort of like the one I had to pass to drive a motorcycle.

Some people can talk on the phone and drive, some simply cannot.

[valerief]

11. Sure, like the drinking test we now have. Some people can drink and drive, some people can't.

Works every time.

NOT!!!!!

[customerserviceguy]

14. Drinking is like texting

Talking hands free on a phone can be like talking to people in a car. If you feel the need to look at the person in the car, or at the phone, maybe you shouldn't be doing either while driving.

[valerief]

15. Good heavens, how did people get to work without a phone in the old days?

Oh, yeah, public transportation.

[customerserviceguy]

19. I'm not into yakking up everybody

but I will accept a call if one comes my way. In any case, I always keep them short, and pull off the road if possible.

[valerief]

28. Well, I guess meeting your needs can justify allowing idiots to smash into me

because they're not concentrating on their driving. That's not hyperbole. I was rear-ended and the guy that hit me said he was sorry, but he was calling someone on his phone. Luckily it wasn't on the highway, but it could have been.

[customerserviceguy]

30. There's people who can do it

and people who can't. I could say the same thing about driving a car with absolutely no evident distractions, too. I see the very worst drivers in the country every day, to and from work, within an hour's radius of NYC.

[Mudoria]

9. Go for it Ray!!!!!

As for Mr.King's assertion "There would be no legitimate, public support for an outright ban.” I think he might be surprised.

[valerief]

10. Just do it! Just do it! Please, please, please. nt

[Saturday]

13. Good! nt

[L0oniX]

17. Cells are ok but they need to ban popcorn machines in cars.

:popcorn:

[Motown_Johnny]

18. how is a hands free device more distracting than talking to someone in the car with you?

Is that the next thing to be banned? No human interaction of any kind while driving?


Texting while driving is a problem that needs to be dealt with but I don't see hands free phones being something that should be banned.

[Imajika]

22. It really is silly...

And yes, it smacks of "nanny state"

My mobile phone use is entirely hands free in my car, it is probably less distracting than having a passenger in the vehicle, or scanning Sirius/XM for something to listen to, etc.

The way to handle distracted driving is probably to just charge people with an additional ticket such as "Failure to Pay Full Time and Attention" if they are otherwise pulled over or involved in an accident.

I do agree that distracted driving is a problem, but trying to ban ALL mobile phone use is just misguided.

[SoCalDem]

20. In new cars, there should be a kill-feature that disables phone signals while the engine is running.

simple.. want to chat? pull over & shut the car off.

[Historic NY]

25. With an On Star phone it looks like your talking to yourself....

its voice command.

[MindPilot]

26. The cell phone ban has become a panacea for all things wrong on the road

Fact is the overall accident rate has been trending down for decades and continues to do so; recent data shows no difference between states that ban cell phone use and those that don't. While there have been some high-profile and tragic accidents relating to cell-phone use, there is not the mass carnage on the highways that is attributable to cell phones.

The same argument was made against the first car radios

Maybe the answer is to let people learn how to do it--the same way people learn to drive on ice; by driving on ice--and the next generation will be at good at communicating while driving as their grandparents were at tuning while driving.

[Rowdyboy]

27. Hang up the goddamned phone and drive! How hard is it to understand?

[blueamy66]

29. I agree.

I will not even answer my phone if I am on the road.

I see young people in cars on the phone, flying down the freeway, oblivious to any other cars around them.

I just don't understand the need to have that phone plastered to your ear all friggin' day.