Seems California is banning some drivers use of Cell Phones July 1st. It breaks down to age and hands free devices. From what I understand they cant just pull you over for cell use but need something else to make the org stop on. anyway its unsafe no matter what state but I know theres a lot of CA members here so I thought I would post it.

Hey Angelo, whats the real low down since your one of CAs finest. Also say Aloha to the family from us here.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/usatoday/morestatessaycellphonesanddrivingdontmix

Cell phone, unless hands free, use in cars is illegal is in West Aus. but that doesn't seem to stop a lot of people. Apparently some can even text message and drive freeway speeds and still get upset if caught. Go figure.:noway:

Bernie

Cell phone, unless hands free, use in cars is illegal is in West Aus. but that doesn't seem to stop a lot of people. Apparently some can even text message and drive freeway speeds and still get upset if caught. Go figure.:noway:

Bernie

And they drive on the wrong side of the road while they're doing it....

Wish that they would bring that law into Ontario, stopping calls while behind the wheel.

Almost ran into a young gal the other day (literally!) going around a double turn, phone tucked up behind her ear, and a cup of coffee in the other. God knows what was in the third?:)

capt

This should help, the article linked by Jeff talks about parts of several different states cell phone laws and really confuses the issue if you want info on the CA law.

http://www.dmv.ca.gov/cellularphonelaws/index.htm

This is going to be interesting because you can be stopped for just cell use in CA as well the law applies to push to talk radio features in cell phones. I wonder about the 2 way radios we use on club driving events, will they be treated like cell phones?

hello jeff. and hello again to your family also. regarding the new cell phone laws, we have been advised of the new laws. to us, its just another law. i personally do not specifically look for cell phone violators but there are coppers that will.

as far as two way radios, the cvc section doesnt address them. it mentions using the ptt on cell phones but that is different than a two way radio. here is the cvc section

http://www.dmv.ca.gov/pubs/vctop/d11/vc23123.htm

cvc 23123 (e) mentions two way radios that uses wireless telephones but again, that is different than using a two way radio. and yes you can be stopped for just using cell phones. when the seat belt law came into effect years ago, we could stop just for the seatbelt as it was a secondary violation. you could literally drive around with no seat belt on violating the with the cop staring at you but couldnt get pulled over until you had another violation. but you know the cop was going to be following you until you commited a violation.

If this was something that wasn't so widespread it could be a good thing. Throwing another law out there for Law enforcement to monitor without giving them a real avenue to do so is frustrating. Here in Arizona I would venture to guess that our traffic problems would ease were it not for the habitual cell phone talkers and especially texters. Most of these folks try to compensate for their diverted attention by driving too slow, riding their brakes and making sudden moves that affects the traffic for a few thousand yards behind them. If we could eliminate the phones, and the rubber neckers we could probably speed up our commutes substantially. There are just so many people doing it, that there aren't enough traffic enforcement personnel to know where to start. It might be good to make it a felony if you are involved in an accident while using a cell phone.

The local newspaper here just did a survey and the majority of people said they would not follow the law. If the saw a policeman they would just put the phone in their lap until they had passed. I think this, as others have stated, is just another law that will be hard to enforce. I agree with the intention though.

It might be good to make it a felony if you are involved in an accident while using a cell phone.I like that idea.:yes: Treat them like drunk drivers. :D

I don’t think “hands free” cell phones are any safer than regular cell phones while driving. It’s the conversation that distracts drivers and not the device they are using. I guarantee you will see those hands free drivers traveling well under the speed limit in the fast lane during rush hour. All the cell phone junkies in California will rush out and buy those stupid looking ear pieces with the flashing lights. Do those things really cause brain cancer?

I hate being around anyone talking on a cell phone for more than a few seconds. I especially hate being stuck in a car with someone on a cell phone.

oh yeah, as written in the q and a in dennis' post,

Q: Does the new “hands-free” law allow drivers 18 and over to text message while driving?
A: The law does not specifically prohibit that, but an officer can pull over and issue a citation to a driver of any age if, in the officer’s opinion, the driver was distracted and not operating the vehicle safely. Sending text messages while driving is unsafe at any speed and is strongly discouraged.

just as your safe, you can still text message. huh?

I think it's a deterrent and a start. There are a lot of things we do in cars that distract us but the cell phone seems to be all consuming with a good many people. You know when a mother pushing her child in a stroller, in a cross walk, stops in the middle of the street to answer her cell phone and actually lets go of the stroller (I witnessed this and there were cars waiting for her so they could make their turn) to get to the phone, there is a very powerful force at work here...

The people in the survey say they will just put their phones in their laps when they see a cop car, that's funny cause they are typically oblivious to everything but the phone call when driving...

I think a good number of folks will try to abide by the law, some will just not use their phone when driving and of course some will ignore it completely. The one thing though by having the law is many may be just a bit more attentive to their driving knowing they could get a ticket.

After watching my wife text while driving down the road, I'm not sure how much positive is going to come out of this law. If she is part of the masses then we're going backwards a bit. At least you can see the road when you have the phone to your ear.

I think lawmakers should also not let women pull down their visor and do make up while driving. I see this daily.

Tony the story goes, when the law was in the early stages text messaging was just in it's infancy and nobody imagined it to be the beast it has become. There is another law being worked on here in CA that may go into effect on Jan 1 09 that addresses text messaging when driving.

I just took the wife and daughter to the airport and my daughter shares that she was almost in an accident yesterday. The other driver was steering and holding a plate in one hand and using chop sticks to eat with the other.

I wish we had this law in Georgia. Actually, I think what we need are sensible "careless driving" laws that include talking on cell phones, eating, etc.

One day on my way to work a few weeks ago, the car behind me kept swerving and veering into other lanes. Was the guy drunk? Probably not--what he was doing was turning turning is head 90 degrees to have a coversation with his passenger and not watching the road.

In NJ it is illegal except with hands free devices and they dont need any other reason to pull you over other than just seeing you on the phone. Hands free is not any safer.The problem is not holding the phone to your head talking,The trouble is people dialing, searching thru menus looking for numbers text messaging and other things that take your eyes off the road.

The same law goes into effect here in North Carolina on 7/1/2008.
I thought I got away from all the “nanny state” BS when I cashed out and left California.

One thing for sure the police will be plenty busy if they really try to enforce this new law.