NEW YORK-With a stroke of Republican Gov. George Pataki’s pen June 28, New York became the first state in the country to impose a statewide ban on the handheld use of wireless phones by most drivers in most instances.
“The misuse of cellular telephones has become the latest terror on our roads and highways,” said Ackerman, whose measure is titled “CRASH,” an acronym for the Call Responsibly and Stay Healthy Act.
The New York measure goes into effect Nov. 1, although there will be a one-month grace period in which police will only issue warnings. Thereafter, first-time offenders whom a judge finds guilty must pay $100 fines. Second offenses will result in $200 fines. For each subsequent violation, drivers will have to pay $500.
Accused violators will have the opportunity to present evidence, including call detail records, to prove their innocence. Until March 2002, those found guilty will have their fines waived if they provide proof of purchase of hands-free accessories.
The statute exempts calls for emergency fire, medical or police assistance by members of the general public and work-related calls by public health and safety personnel. Citizens Band radios also are exempt from the prohibition.
The new law also will require, for the first time, that police report accidents in which cell phones are a cause or contributing factor.
“By requiring drivers to put down their cell phones and pay attention to the road, this new law will help make our roads safer and save lives,” Gov. Pataki said.
New York state Assemblyman Felix Ortiz, a Democrat from the New York City borough of Brooklyn, has been the driving force behind the legislation, which he first introduced six years ago after witnessing a traffic accident caused by a driver talking on a cellular phone.
“We want drivers to keep both hands on the wheel and maintain their concentration … on driving and road conditions,” Ortiz said.
In his rationale, included in the legislation, Assemblyman Ortiz said the existing state vehicle and traffic law that requires drivers to keep one hand on the wheel “does not address the dangers and risks associated with the use of handheld mobile telephones while operating a motor vehicle.”
The Democratic-led state Assembly passed the bill June 25, three days after the Republican-controlled state Senate approved the measure. In early April, Gov. Pataki, a Republican, and the leaders of both houses of the state Legislature had said they would support restrictions on handheld wireless phone use by drivers.
Their announcement came one week after the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute published results of a survey it had conducted indicating that 87 percent of New York state’s registered voters and 85 percent of its cellular phone owners favor the ban.
By then, the large and populous New York counties of Suffolk and Westchester already had enacted their own restrictions on the handheld use of wireless phones while driving. New York City had imposed these restrictions on taxi drivers using wireless communicators other than dispatch radios.
Like the city and county ordinances it supersedes, the New York state law permits the use of hands-free devices like speakerphones, headsets or voice-activated dialing by people operating a moving vehicle.
Shares of Plantronics Inc., a Santa Cruz, Calif., company which is the largest aftermarket supplier of hands-free accessories, were trading at $21.62 by 4 p.m. June 28. That was a few hours after Gov. Pataki signed the bill and a half-hour before the close of the business day on the New York Stock Exchange. Plantronics’ stock has hit a 52-week high of $52 and a 52-week low of $16.
“All of this technology will be built in next year,” said Howie Waterman, a spokesman for Verizon Wireless, which broke ranks with many other wireless carriers by offering early support for the New York state law.
“This bill is a good model for the rest of the country because it is statewide, requires hands-free devices and exempts emergency calls,” he said.
However, Verizon has not taken a position on proposals for a federal ban on handheld use of wireless phones while driving.
On Capitol Hill, U.S. Rep. Gary Ackerman (D-NY), and U.S. Sen. John Corzine (D-NJ), introduced companion bills in May that would make a federal case out of most handheld use of cell phones by operators of moving vehicles. The proposal would allow individual states to impose their own systems of penalties on offenders. However, states that fail to enact such legislation would be subject to the loss of a portion of their federal highway funds.
Corzine and Ackerman said their proposal is patterned on legislation introduced in 40 states, including New York.
“Today, New York has taken an important step in making its roads safer. Now it is time for us to act on the federal level to ensure that the safety of drivers and pedestrians is uniform across the nation,” Sen. Corzine said June 28.
When the New York state Senate approved the restrictions June 22, Cingular Wireless issued a statement that said, in part, it has joined with other carriers, which are “proactively engaged with the National Conference of State Legislatures to fully examine this important issue.”
Education about sensible driving practices and enforcement of existing laws against inattentive driving are “the most effective way to deal with the overall issue (since) the overwhelming preponderance of scientific studies indicates that wireless communication represents a small fraction of driver distraction,” Cingular Wireless said.
A spokeswoman for Sprint PCS said the company opposes “singling out any one type of distraction,” and that it offers hands-free kits and voice-activated dialing.
Dee Yankoskie, manager of wireless education programs for the Cellular Telecommunications & Internet Association, said the trade group does not become involved in state legislative issues. CTIA does advocate better data collection about the causes of motor vehicle accidents and stricter enforcement of existing laws against reckless, careless or inattentive driving. Like its members, CTIA also is active in promoting responsible driving, she said.
