Proposed cell phone ban stirs debate

By Craig Schneider and Michelle E. Shaw

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Georgians alarmed that they may lose their calling-while-driving privileges can relax; key state officials are in no hurry to prohibit drivers from talking on their cell phones.

The National Transportation Safety Board ignited a nationwide furor Tuesday, calling on states to ban both calling and texting while driving, even if the calls involve hands-free devices.

Georgia has already prohibited texting while driving and made it a crime for anyone under that age of 18 to talk on a cell phone while driving.

State Sen. Jack Murphy, R-Cumming, who authored the anti-texting bill, said Tuesday that the state has gone far enough. He said most lawmakers would oppose a universal ban on cell phone use behind the wheel.

"I just don't think we need to go that far," Murphy said. "You have to remember that we are the state that fought for years over seat belt usage in pickup trucks."

Further prohibitions would amount to government pushing its nose too far into people's lives, he said. He also noted that many businesses depend on workers using cell phones on the road.

"Hands-free is the way to go on this. I can put a Blackberry on the dash and put it on speaker phone," Murphy said. "What's the difference between that and my having a conversation with someone sitting next to me?"

Thomas Allen, 43, of Sandy Springs, is right there with him.

"It's called a mobile phone for a reason," Allen said.  "But I'm 100 percent for hands-free."

Others saw more wisdom in the NTSB's plan, especially those who've been victimized by a distracted driver.

"I'm cool with it because I had a lady hit me while she was talking on the phone," said Tommy Bouie, 43, of Marietta. "I have a phone, but I don't use it while driving."

And UPS, an Atlanta-based company with thousands of employees constantly on the road, said it prohibits distracted driving as a matter of policy. UPS drivers are not permitted to use a cell phone –- at all -- while driving, said company spokesman Dan McMackin.

The federal safety board, which does not have the power to mandate such restrictions, issued the recommendation in response to a massive pileup last year in Missouri in which two people died. NTSB investigators found that the 19-year-old who caused the initial collision had sent or received 11 texts in the 11 minutes before the accident. The driver and a 15-year-old student on a school bus were killed and 38 others were injured.

A spokeswoman for Gov. Nathan Deal passed on offering an opinion on the proposal, saying it would be a matter for the General Assembly to consider.

The governor's traffic safety office has already labeled cell phones a dangerous distraction for drivers. Short of endorsing the federal proposal, officials there made clear that they believe drivers should leave mobile devices alone.

"Our office discourages all cell phone use while driving," said Spencer Moore, deputy director of the Governor's Office of Highway Safety. "Distracted driving is a serious problem. Put the cell phone in the glove compartment."

Locally, some law enforcement officials also urged drivers to put away their phones.

The moments that a driver takes to dial a phone number can create tragic results should the traffic in front of them slow quickly, said Sgt. Dana Pierce, spokesman of the Cobb County Police Department.

"It diverts a person's eyes from the roadway to that device," Pierce said. "It reduces the response time of drivers."

But even if lawmakers tightened the law, enforcement could be a nightmare, some people said.

"I'm from Baltimore, and we have a ban on using cell phones without a headset," said Keiah Ward, 23, of Marietta. "But people still use them anyway."

The NTSB proposal would make an exception for the use of cell phones during emergencies.

Some people saw that as a potential gray area.

"Who will quantify what is an emergency?" asked Ebonye Bryant, 24, of Stone Mountain. "An emergency to me might be minor to someone else."