Washington Sees Limited Ban on Cell Phone Use While Driving

According to a SeattlePI.com article, holding a cell phone while driving may garner a $124 ticket starting July 1. The article also says that there will be no grace period.

With Tuesday’s cell phone restrictions – limiting motorists to hands-free devices – Washington and California have joined three other states (New York, New Jersey and Connecticut) with similar bans.

There is a difference, however, between Washington’s law and the other states. In Washington this is considered a secondary offense, which means that, while the law does not allow a person breaking it to be pulled over simply due to that violation, the person can be written up in conjunction with another violations such as speeding or running a red light.

One difference between the Washington law and the Connecticut one is that, according to the article, in Connecticut ticketed motorists can have their $100 fees waived if they buy a hands-free set and are able to show a receipt for it to the court.

Each ticket issued in Washington is $124 and applies only to drivers and not passengers.

Even as sales of various hands-free headsets may increase due to the law, there are concerns as to whether it will change habits or whether or not the roads will become safer. Anne McCartt, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety senior research vice president, says in the article that secondary laws, while comforting to the public, making people feel like there is something being done, are harder to enforce than primary laws.

Studies done by the institute show mixed results. In Washington, D.C., for example, the rate of hands-free set use dropped four months after the District required their use. On the other hand, cell phone use increased among North Carolina’s teen drivers after the state banned its use within the age group.

While accident statistics involving cell phone use are hard to come by, some feel that the laws are only as good as their enforcement.

The general consensus seems to be to not talk on the phone while driving as that is an unnecessary distraction.

(July 3, 2008)