Maryland Ban on Hand-Held Cell Phone Use While Driving Takes Effect
Maryland is now one of 8 states with a ban on handheld cell phones and the only one which classifies using a handheld phone while driving as a secondary offense. New York's ban on texting while driving is a secondary offense, and a five-county survey five months after it took effect revealed that only a single ticket had been issued.The Maryland cell phone ban is weak for another reason. The law contains exceptions allowing the use of a hand-held cell phone to initiate or end a cell phone call while driving.
According to the Baltimore Sun, it's retailers selling hands-free sets who benefit when laws such as Maryland's take effect.
The Federal government has recently made combattng distracted driving - including talking on cell phones at the wheel- a national priority. Cell phone use causes six percent of distracted driving crashes. Distracted driving as a result of cell phone use is responsible for 2,600 deaths, 333,000 injuries and 1.5 million property damage claims annually. The monetary cost of driver distraction due to cell phones is $43 billion.
According to the National Safety Council, a driver makes on average 20 major decisions per mile driven. Those decisions must be made close to spontaneously with realizing the need, with drivers often having less than one-half second to act to avoid collisions.
A 2006 study by Virginia Tech and the National Transportation Safety Administration found that talking/listening on cell phones and dialing them are equally responsible for causing crashes. The study also concluded that the hand-held versus hands-free distinction makes no difference when it comes to safety; talking on either presents a greater danger than driving drunk.
Col. Terrence B. Sheridan, Maryland State Police Superintendent, told the Dagger that failure to pay full attention to the road is the number one cause of crashes in Maryland. 31,000 crashes occur in Maryland each year due to driver inattention, including using cell phones while driving.
Published by Carol Bengle Gilbert - Featured Contributor in Travel and Lifestyle
2010 Yahoo! Outstanding Contributor of the Year, Carol has consistently been designated a Top 100 Yahoo! Contributor Network writer. She received a 2008 People's Media Award for "Best Article." Carol’s pr... View profile
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10 Comments
Post a CommentI think it is a good thing. That is just me. I think it is just too distracting.
I could sense this movement coming all around the country, good principle, but so tough to enforce.
Good luck to Maryland. They're not enforcing it in any other state with such a ban, why should MD be any different? People are still cell-phoning and driving. Since cell phones have become rampant, I have noticed a distinct increase in the number of people who are driving with their driver's side wheels in the oncoming lane. A sharp honk on the horn gets them back where they belong, but they look at you like YOU'RE the one doing something wrong. I have a friend who says, when she calls me from her car and I yell at her, I'm on my earpiece. So what? You still had to dial that handless phone! Makes me furious!
This is great! I hope it gets the same for all of the States
People should not drive and use cell phones. It is just dumb.
Good for them.
Glad to hear it. I only hope that Pennsylvania follows suit.
Too bad they didn't make the law tougher, it should be a law in all states
I am all for it, when ever someone is doing something stupid on the road they are usually talking on their cell phone.
It is banned here in California too, but unfortunately people still talk on their phones while driving. You see it all the time still. Great article =0)