Looks like the Pennsylvania cell phone ban bill is back:
Democratic state Rep. Josh Shapiro plans to reintroduce his bill to outlaw handheld phones while driving.
For Josh Shapiro, the numbers tell the story.
Last year, according to the state police, there were 1,245 accidents on Pennsylvania’s roadways where a driver was talking on a handheld cell phone, compared to 56 accidents with a driver using a hands-free device.
In 2006, the totals were eerily similar: 1,241 crashes with handheld phones; 60 with hands-free.
Shapiro, a Democratic state representative from the 153rd District, which includes most of Abington and part of Upper Dublin, wants to make it illegal to drive while talking on a handheld cell phone.
Just to give reader some sense of scale here, there were 6,657 crashes involving heavy trucks in Pennsylvania in 2006, 4,763 accidents involving pedestrians and 3,889 motorcycle accidents. Even bicycle accidents are higher. On the scale of vehicular dangers Pennsylvanians face, this is a small one. We have accepted in Pennsylvania that motorcyclist deserve to have the freedom to choose not to wear a helmet, even though this is shown to make our highways more dangerous. I think people should have to freedom to responsible use a cell phone while driving. Distracted and careless driving is already a crime in most states. At the very most, cell phone use while driving should be a secondary offense.
