Wednesday, December 1, 2010

New Law for Student Drivers

On November 1, 2010, a new law went into effect that will crack down on young drivers using handheld devices while driving.

SB 1908, authored by 10 legislators, including Sen. Anthony Sykes,
applies to drivers with learner permits and intermediate Class D
licenses, or drivers between the ages of 15 and 18 years old.

The law reads that these licenses may be suspended or canceled for
"using a hand-held electronic device while operating a motor vehicle
for non-life-threatening emergency purposes."

According to the bill, a hand-held electronic device is defined as a
"mobile telephone or electronic device with which a user engages in a
telephone call, plays or stores media, including, but not limited to
music and video, or sends or reads a text message while requiring the
use of at least one hand."

Driving Dangers

According to cellphonesafety.org, there are two types of cell phone
behavior that typically lead to unsafe driving conditions:

Handling the phone: dialing, answering, text messaging, etc.

The conversation introduced to the environment.

The National Safety Council has tested cellular phone use while
driving and found that some test subjects were so distracted that they
were unaware of traffic signals.

The results were unaffected by whether the subject manually held the
phone or if the mechanism was hands free, a reason why some believe
hands-free initiatives are a weak and ineffectual way to control cell
phone use while driving, and allegations that use of a cell phone
impairs a driver's ability as much as driving drunk, according to
http://www.cellphonesafety.org ]cellphonesafety.org.

Teen Text Talk

When it comes to cell phones, teens comprise perhaps the largest
population of drivers distracted by dialing and text messaging.
Texting, as it is called, is the number one way teens communicate with
friends quickly and conveniently via cell phone, reports [

The website claims that not only is texting a major cause of driving
incidents among teens, but most of them know it. "While this may seem
alarming, it's not out of line with the typical
it's-not-gonna-happen-to-me sensibility of most young adults. Combine
this activity with the fact that most teens lack the driving
experience and savvy of more mature drivers and the situation is potentially volatile."
For more information, visit www.cellphonesafety.org