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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE |
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State
Rep. Tim Briggs |
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Briggs: House passes ban on texting & handheld cell phone use
by drivers in PA
HARRISBURG, Jan. 26 – State Rep. Tim Briggs voted for a bill that passed the House of Representatives that would make it a primary offense for motorists on Pennsylvania roadways to use handheld mobile phones to make calls or text while driving, punishable by a $50 fine.
"The message is simple: put down the cell phone, the Blackberry, the iPhone and pay attention to the road, not your conversation," said Briggs, D-Montgomery. "This bill will prevent accidents and save lives – we’re putting drivers on notice that the police will be looking for offenders. If the fear of causing a fatal accident won’t make people put their phones down, maybe the fear of a ticket will."
Briggs, a co-sponsor of the bill, noted that in 2008, one in every six fatal traffic accidents was caused by driver distraction.
California, Connecticut, New Jersey, New York, Oregon and Washington have banned handheld cell phones for drivers. Nineteen states ban text messaging while driving, according to the Governors Highway Safety Association.
House Bill 2070 would ban all handheld use of mobile phones, smart phones, personal digital assistants or portable computers while the vehicle is in motion, with the exception of devices being used exclusively as global positioning or navigation systems, or devices that are permanently installed in the vehicle.
Exceptions to the ban would include situations where the vehicle is at a complete stop and the vehicle’s transmission is shifted to neutral or park, drivers calling 911 or the use of hands-free mobile phones, including dialing. The $50 fine would be doubled to $100 if the infraction took place in a school zone, active work zone, highway safety corridor or emergency response area.
The bill would supersede all local laws that address the issue of distracted driving, including one in Philadelphia that bans cell phone use by drivers.