Hambergler

I am so tired of people driving way under the speed limit on the freeway, making erratic turns and just not paying attention. Drivers doing anything distracting while driving should be fined. Putting on makeup, eating, beating kids, but especially cell phones. I believe cell phones are responsible for many more accidents then reported. No one is going to admit they were yakking during an accident. I don't think a law in my state will stop it all together, but people will make shorter calls and be more discrete. I don't understand why it hasn't been passed yet. It's a no brainer to me. Here's a list of states and countries that ban it.

http://www.cellular-news.com/car_bans/

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ikonic

I know a lot of cellphone companies do this already, but it should be required by law to provide hands-free methods to minimize the distraction. Face it, we are now a mobile society and this problem isnt going to go away by imposing laws, there simply are too many tangibles; however, I applaud the recent laws regarding text messaging. I don't blame the drivers about this, I blame the cellphone providers.

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Jimmy Jammer

So if I pull the trigger am I responsible or is it the gun or the manufacturer? Do we all not have a responsibility to exercise common sense when dealing with an issue such as this? In my experience the people who talk on the phone the most are the worst drivers to begin with 17-25. How about technology that shuts down your phone when you start your car. Kind of like a convicted drunk driver that has the breathalyser hooked up to his ignition...

I don't mean to come off as a dick but my daughter totaled her car talking on the phone. So was taught not to talk on the phone and drive, I would arbitrarily call her and bust her for answering while driving and seeing the caller ID to boot. In the end people do as they wish until it crosses that line. I certainly hope no one gets injured because someone is talking to a significant other 2 minutes from the house or calling to see if we need milk while driving. IMO the danger out weighs the benefits...JJ

¼ ¢

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OscarTheGrouch

It's illegal to talk on a cellphone and drive where I am from....pretty hefty fine if your busted.

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Ferris Bueller

I do the exact opposite. I drive well over the speed limit and talk on the cell phone. However, being a guy, my average cell phone conversation lasts under a minute (unlike women who could occupy a coast-to-coast drive with a single phone call). Thank god for radar detectors.

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VegaBond

Well in Jersey now its a $100 fine, and they have given out several dozen since it came in affect last Saturday.. That and picking nose, drinking, makeup, anything distracting you heh

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TheBigC

I have a cell phone and support cell phone bans while driving. People drive like crap when they are on it. There are a couple major issues I have seen with people on it:

1. They have no free hands to use blinkers, hence they never do
2. They drive at erratic speeds, constsantly slowing down than speeding up
3. They are all over the road and sliding in and out of lanes
4. They insist on staying in the fast lane driving at 52 mph, when the speed limit is 65

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Elwenil

Hmm, I think it would have to depend on the driver. I have no issues driving while on the phone and have never had any sort of accident while talking. To me it's no different than talking to the person next to you and much better than fighting with the three screaming brats in the backseat. The problem is it's up to the driver to decide if they are capable of driving while talking and not getting distracted. I am a professional driver with a class A CDL with all available endorsements and can drive just about anything on the roads as well as various race cars, machinery, and military vehicles, so I don't really have a problem driving while talking. Now texting, I do have a problem with. If you are looking at your phone, you aren't looking at the road.

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RGM-79N_GM_CUstom

^^^Same.

I don't have a CDL but talking on a cell phone bothers me about as much as talking to a person next to me. I don't like texting while driving though.

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Tempus

I feel strongly about this one. Studies have shown that cell-phone drivers are as impaired as drivers who drink. With what I consider overly strict laws for DUI (.08? Give me a break), and almost no attention paid to cell-driving, the disparity bugs me quite a bit.

Further the fact that seemingly 1/3 of all drivers on the road at any given time are using the phone (and they are always the ones driving slow, cutting you off, etc), and I'd really support some stronger laws regarding their use.

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TheFatKidDeath

Generally speaking, I'm not for creating laws that are meant to govern behavior but it's become a real public safety issue in my opinion. I've personally known two people who have been in crashes due to talking while driving. One completely totaled his car. I constantly see people not paying attention with one hand holding a cell phone.

I believe in July here in CA the ban on talking while driving without a cellphone headset is going to effect. Hopefully it will make a difference.

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Evo<^|SiNz|^>

It's a myth that hands-free devices reduce risk. You are still just as distracted because it's the conversation that is taking your attention away from driving -- not the device itself. Handling a phone does take your hand away from other important duties while driving (holding on to the wheel, for example), but your attention is still largely diverted with a hands-free setup.

When you're having a conversation with someone else in the car, they have the ability to act as a second set of eyes. Cell phone conversations don't have that luxury.

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TheFatKidDeath

Has there been any studies done on the accident rate operating a vehicle while using either hand or a hands free cellphone?

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Kerostasis

From personal experience, I know I can't pay full attention to both a cell phone conversation and the road at the same time. However, I tend to split my attention in favor of controlling my car effectively while letting my conversational skills suffer, rather than the other way around. Also my car is responsive enough that I can control it easily with one hand anyway, (yes even including the blinkers) so hands free isn't an issue for me. So I don't feel like I'm any more dangerous on the road while using a phone.

If anything I'm probably more dangerous on the road when talking to someone in the passenger seat, as they do a better job of holding my attention on them instead of the road while they're sitting next to me. >.>

That said, I could easily see how this would not be universally true of all cars/drivers, and in general you wouldn't want to be among a large group of drivers talking on the phone.

(Oh, and you don't have to worry about me driving slowly in front of you in the fast lane, because I'll probably be driving slowly in front of you in the slow lane, even when I'm not on the phone. )

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Gillespie

I put my cell on speaker whenever my wife calls me. I usually tend to zone her out when she's on the phone anyway, so while driving it's a negligible impact.

Unless I mindlessly agree to something I wouldn't have agreed to if I had been paying attention. ;P

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