November 27, 2007
Cell Phone Driving Ban Largely Ignored
The Washington Times is reporting that the number of tickets issued by the MPD to drivers using cell phones without a hands free device has increased for the third straight year.
In the first year after the law was enacted in mid-2004, the city dished out 7523 tickets. The following year the number rose to 8,358. This year, it's 9,484. The numbers raise a host of questions about the efficacy and enforcement of this law. It's unclear whether drivers are getting the message at all, or if officers are just clamping down more.
There's also the question of whether or not the whole law is a boondoggle for the hands-free industry, but every time we try to raise this issue, people hang up the phone on us.
The ticket fine is $100, but first-time offenders can get it suspended by buying a hands-free accessory within a specified time.
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Any idea how good the enforcement is? For the sake of argument: if we assume 10,000 infractions/year (people using there cell while driving), then we have a 75 - 94% enforcement rate, but people keep talking. If on the other had we assume a more realistic figure like 10,000 driver/callers a day, then the enforcement rate is more like 0.2%. In the former case, the difference between 7523 and 9484 is virtually zip and doesn't represent a "crack Down" in my book.
If drivers aren't getting the message maybe it's due to lax enforcement.
P.S. The reason I took the time to chime in on this one is that I notice the people that drive the worst are often oblivious to others as they chat away with their cell phone firmly pressed to their head.
Hot tip: if you're a paranoid schizophrenic like me, a Bluetooth headset makes for a kickass hannukah gift. People will stop thinking you're a crack-addled maniac screaming at his shoes and easily mistake you for an up-and-coming K Street investment consultant. There's even an Israeli model that doubles as a dreidl! Mazel tov!
The whole thing is facking stupid. If the cops simply enforced the laws that we all learned when we first got our driver's licenses, we wouldn't need a law against using cell phones. It is entirely possible to talk on a cell phone while driving safely, just like it's entirely possible to drive like a complete ass while doing nothing other than driving. I promise you that I can drive and yak on the phone better than most people can drive under any circumstances in this city.
The problem isn't cell phones. The problem is that very few people seem to realize there are other people on the road. I am pretty sure there are laws requiring:
To name a few. So, we issue ten thousand cell phone tickets to drivers who, most likely, were not breaking any actual rule of the road. Anyone care to provide statistics on the number of tickets issued for violating any of the above mentioned laws in a given year? I'm guessing less than 500 in a given year. The cell phone law won't make idiots better drivers, unfortunately.
Yeah, but if you take an idiot driver, take one of their hands off the wheel, and then distract them with bable piped into their ear - I'll show you an even greater menace to the roads!
THe police already selectively enforce laws. The main one being double parking.
On two ocassions I've seen a certain councilmember driving around in a certain blue Chrysler Seebring with a cellphone to his ear.
Probably just doing some push polling.
The problem isn't cell phones. The problem is that very few people seem to realize there are other people on the road.
They're aware the other people are on the road. They just don't care.
Why is it that cellphones make people drive 20 MPH under the speed limit? Next time I'm banging my wife and she tells me to slow down, I'll just reach for my phone and call Moviefone and pretend I'm on I-270 outside Gaithersburg. Yeah, that's it, baby. Go ahead and flag me in. Daddy's gonna merge without signaling. Hell, I'm going to turn on my left signal and then TURN RIGHT! You like, that, huh?
I've known two people who got pulled over for talking on cell phones while driving. Both got off with a warning, although they are both stunning blondes and that might be it right there. People do not stay in their lanes or change lanes responsibly while talking on the phone I've noticed. Enforcement is the only answer.
I have been pulled over for the no-hands free device infraction, and I didn't get the warning. I tried to explain it was an emergency phone call,but the officer said I should've pulled over to talk. This, of course, was on Calvert heading south at 5:45 pm on a weekday.
I got a hands-free device, and it's MUCH MORE distracting to deal with when a call comes through!
Since DCPD doesn't seem to give two shakes about obeying this law themselves (I stopped counting after I hit two dozen the number of officers in uniform in marked cars with handsets jammed to their ears while they drove with one hand at 12 o'clock), why should they enforce this for us average citizens?
As for "the fast lane": the speed limit is the same in all the lanes.
I have never actually witnessed a DC cop giving any sort of traffic ticket. Ever. So why should this be any different?
I have a cop friend that swears they give traffic tickets all the time. But I have never seen it. I've actually seen motorists run redlights right in front of DC cops and the cop does nothing.
There's a reason why so many traffic laws in DC are ignored. It's because we know the chances of getting a ticket are laughably small.
This, of course, was on Calvert heading south at 5:45 pm on a weekday.
Well there's your problem. Calvert doesn't go south.
Just based on my own observations while walking around town recently, it does seem like more people, not less, are talking on their cell phones while driving, compared with a year ago. Or maybe I'm just noticing it more than I used to.
Forget the fine. Confiscate the phone. I don't care so long as I can still drive while texting my bitches. And by bitches I mean my mother-in-law and my minature doberman, Diderot.
How about the policy that if you purchase a hands free device, you can have your first ticket waived? Are they serious? This isn't the same as fixing a headlight. Where are the statistics to prove that drive with a hands free device are safer than driver with a cell phone up against your ear?
@ Jamie: I second your list! My biggest pet peeve are people who don't signal in this city. Is it such an inconvenience to let other drivers know that you are planning to turn left at this particular stop sign?
Also, it doesn't appear that the police or metro are held to the same standard as us lowly civilian car drivers. Many a time I have seen a police officer in their cruiser chatting on the phone without a hands-free control or a metro bus driver talking up a storm while driving passengers around town....
I actually find driving with a "hands free" device much more dangerous than simply holding the cell phone. That said, I do use it when I am driving in DC, but once into Hyattsville or Chevy Chase, forget it, I shed the wires....
"As for "the fast lane": the speed limit is the same in all the lanes."
You're one of those people? Please... stay in the right lane.
Where are the statistics to prove that drive with a hands free device are safer than driver with a cell phone up against your ear?
There are none. Still, nobody gets re-elected by saying we need to pass less laws. There's nothing wrong with DC that pointless and unenforceable legislation can't prolong.
"Yeah, but if you take an idiot driver, take one of their hands off the wheel, and then distract them with bable piped into their ear - I'll show you an even greater menace to the roads!"
So I guess driving a manual transmission with an annoying passenger should also be outlawed???
"As for "the fast lane": the speed limit is the same in all the lanes."
Nope. Stay right except to pass. That's the law. People like you think it's ok to camp out in the passing lane like a moron.
"I've known two people who got pulled over for talking on cell phones while driving. Both got off with a warning, although they are both stunning blondes..."
Funny you mention that Chimay, because I think that the only time when this rule is enforced is when the infraction is done by a good looking woman. A girl that I worked with also got pulled over for talking on a cell phone. Though not a blonde, she is a very good looking brunette. The worst part was that she didn't even pull out of her parking spot, but the cop still felt it was his duty to to enforce, more like try to get a date.
DCPD doesn't effectively enforce laws against narcotics trafficking or murder. Why should they start caring about cell phones?
There many not be statistics on proving that you are a better drive with a hands-free device, but there definitely has to be studies done on drivers who are holding and talking on their phones while operating a vehicle.
I keep my phone on speaker and use that while I'm driving. I feel like it keeps me a little more occupied on the road.
And, for the record, everyone THINKS they drive fine with cell phones. Heck, almost everyone I know things they are a perfect driver. The reality is, YOU'RE NOT PERFECT.
Nothing is going to deter any driver unless the insurance companies start jacking up rates for cell phone violations. If the insurance companies treated cell phone violations and cell phone causing accidents like reckless driving or drunk driving, people will hang up faster than you can say 150% increase in premiums.
"Nope. Stay right except to pass. That's the law. People like you think it's ok to camp out in the passing lane like a moron."
Sorry, there's nothing in the DC code or regs that says that.
I assume you're basing your legal conclusion on those highway signs that designate "passing/cruising/slow" lanes. But I'm not sure those reflect the law anywhere, and they certainly don't reflect the law here.
I assume you're one of those dicks that flash their lights and honk when someone is in front of you. I absolutely love to block people like that.
I'm surprised no one has brought up the fact that the law doesn't actually say one has to USE the hands free device, just that the phone must be EQUIPPED with a hands free device:
http://mpdc.dc.gov/mpdc/cwp/view,a,1240,q,547851,mpdcNav_GID,1552,mpdcNav,%7C.asp
Sorry Reid. That is what the code says. Here it is straight from the municipal regs posted on the DC DMV web site:
2201 DRIVING ON THE RIGHT SIDE OF THE ROADWAY: PROPER USE OF THE ROADWAY
2201.1 Upon all roadways of sufficient width, a vehicle shall be driven upon the right half of the roadway, except as follows:
a) When overtaking and passing another vehicle proceeding in the same direction under this section governing such movement;
and further down ...
2202 OVERTAKING AND PASSING
2202.1 The rules set forth in this section shall govern the overtaking and passing of vehicles proceeding in the same direction.
2202.2 The driver of a vehicle overtaking another vehicle proceeding in the same direction shall pass to the left of the vehicle at a safe distance and shall not again drive to the right side of the roadway until safely clear of the overtaken vehicle.
Ohhhhhh snaaaaaaaaaaap.
Check out 2201.
http://dmv.dc.gov/info/title-18/chap22_pdf.shtm
"I assume you're one of those dicks that flash their lights and honk when someone is in front of you. I absolutely love to block people like that."
I'll just assume you're one of those morons that doesn't know the law. And I'd be assuming correctly.
A lot of the abusers I see on my way around the city are not DC drivers ... they are driving cars that have VA or MD tags ... or other states. But you know what? There's no notification of this important law on any of the thoroughfares coming into DC. So how does a driver from Delaware know that we have a hands-free law? Or a VA or MD driver?
Ignorance of the law is not excuse for violating it (ask any judge). That said, I can recall numerous occasions, particularly when the law first took effect, when DC posted electronic signs on major roads into the city warning of the law.
TruxtonResident
Please. When I first moved to the area and was living in MD, I was aware of the law immediately. Most of the vehicles with MD or VA tags that you see in the city are driven by people who live in the area and presumably have good reason to enter the District (i.e. job) so they have no excuse whatsoever for being ignorant.
If you hold your phone right, it just looks like you are sullenly resting your head on your arm after a long day at work. The cops don't notice the phone, and you look just like everyone else leaving DC in a haze of depression and regret.
:-P
But seriously, some of you people are as bad as the fat, smelly, unkempt, middle-aged weirdos in DC neighborhood associations who feel the need to FREAK THE HELL OUT every time someone walks their dog 3 feet without a leash or leaves their bike in an "unauthorized" area for 5 minutes - all in the name of enforcing some pointless and inane technicality.
In the usual DC bumper-to-bumper traffic, there is nothing less dangerous about talking on a hands-free device than holding the phone. You don't need your hands at 10 and 2 on the steering wheel - you are not going to need to make wild swerves at 3 mph. The additional hand is the only difference, otherwise people are just as distracted.
Reid: In NJ it's also written into the law, and it's illegal to not yield when someone gives a visual and audible signal (assuming it's safe to move to the right). The laws are similar in many states.
Mike B, 18 DCMR 2201.1 deals with driving on the right side of the road, not the right-hand lane; 18 DCMR 2201.1(a) serves to permit crossing over the median strip while passing (when permitted). The key regulation is actually 18 DCMR 2201.2:
"Upon all roadways, any vehicle proceeding at less than the normal speed of traffic at the time and place and under the conditions then existing shall be driven in the right-hand lane then available for traffic, or as close as practicable to the right-hand curb or edge of the roadway, except when overtaking and passing another vehicle proceeding in the same direction or when preparing for a left turn at an intersection or into a private road, driveway, or alley."
So, if you're going slower than normal speed, keep right unless passing or turning left. If you're going at or above normal speed, you don't need to keep right even if you're not passing or turning left. Sensible, except when you've got someone who thinks normal speed is 15+ MPH over the speed limit stuck behind someone who thinks normal speed is just 5 MPH over the speed limit.
I'll leave it to Reid and f---registering to argue which of them got it closer. (Hint: Reid)
TLB: they don't usually teach people to hold the wheel at 10 and 2 any more - it's now more like 3 and 9, the reason being that at 10 and 2 if the airbag goes off you end up punching yourself in the face.
36 comments about cellphone policy and 8 total comments about Sean Taylor's passing. Unfreakinbelievable.
Thank you Cminus. I actually did read those regs before my first post, and like MikeB, at first I thought they said what Mike and The One That Recommends Sexual Relations with the Registration Process said, but once you read it closely enough, you realize that they're not talking about the right lane, they're talking about the right side of the road period. Hence "right half" in 2201.
So no, Fuckregistrating, I am not one of those morons that spouts off about the law without knowing it. However, you seem quite willing to have done just that.
And Politburo, is that really the law in NJ regarding passing? I could see it being the case for highways, but not every two-lane city street.
And I don't give a rat's ass that someone is honking and flashing his lights just so he can continue to break the law going 40 miles over the speed limit zigging in and out of traffic. I figure he's breaking a lot more laws than I am.
Moose,
The Mythbusters soooo busted that one...or did they confirm it....damn I have to go back to my DVR.
Anybody else have a problem with the posting's photo? I mean apart from from her driving while using a cellphone and her car's missing a driver's side door. This woman is smiling while using a cellphone. WTF is up with that? Everyone I know, when they're on their phone, either looks depressed, confused, or constipated, and that's when they're not weeping bitterly about what happened last night and that THEY CANT DO THIS TO ME! WE WERE MADE TO BE TOGETHER! DON'T YOU F**KING HANG UP ON ME! I HATE YOU HATE YOU HATE YOU!
Nobody looks that happy when they're on their cellphone. I haven't looked that happy since I got fingerbanged by Yo Yo Ma.
36 comments about cellphone policy and 8 total comments about Sean Taylor's passing. Unfreakinbelievable.
Not at all. There are many different opinions on this issue ("Using a cell phone while driving is dangerous!" "No, it isn't!" "It's dangerous if you don't have a hands-free set!" "If you're in the right lane, get outta my way!" "Yo Yo Ma is dreamy!"), but only one on Sean Taylor's death ("So, Amber, murder -- a good thing, or a bad thing?").
"Upon all roadways of sufficient width, a vehicle shall be driven upon the right
half of the roadway, except as follows:
(a) When overtaking and passing another vehicle proceeding in the same
direction under this section governing such movement;"
Reid, you must be a lawyer because I have no idea how you could misinterpret the above statement. When you're driving on a four lane highway, wouldn't you be passing someone in the same direction?? I'd love to see you explain your way out of that ticket: "butttt offffficer I'm on a HIGHWAY, not a ROADWAY!!"
And for the record, the people weaving in and out of traffic and speeding at 40+ miles over the speed limit are breaking the law. If you're camping out in the PASSING lane and not actually passing anyone, you're also breaking the law. Trying to get around self righteous morons like yourself by passing them on the right is also illegal.