April 18, 2006
Restrictions on Cellphone Use While Driving Gain Traction
States are scrambling to impose restrictions on cellphone use by drivers, reports the WSJ (free access) in an article that rounds up States with laws and States without.
"Twenty-six states and the District of Columbia have written legislation on the issue, mostly since 2003. This year, other legislatures are tackling the subject, and two states have passed laws on it.
... In states without laws, a number of municipalities have passed their own local restrictions. For example, Shelby Township in Michigan has an ordinance that makes it a civil violation to drive and use a cellphone. Now, after a fatal car crash in Macomb County in February, the state legislature is considering a law.
While no state has banned talking on a cellphone while driving, Connecticut, New Jersey, New York and Washington, D.C., have the most restrictive laws: Except in emergencies, motorists in those states can use cellphones only with hands-free devices, such as earpieces. Restrictions vary across other states. Some prohibit teenagers, bus drivers and drivers with learning permits from using cellphones -- even with earpieces, Mr. Sundeen says. ...
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