What an evening yesterday! I am driving home and a women in an SUV passes me on the left while drifting into my lane. She has a cell phone glued to her ear. I honk my horn and curse. It makes me feel good!

About 1/2 mile up the road she is stopped at a red light. When the light turns green, she starts up, phone still glued to her ear, and suddenly swerves way over to the right onto the shoulder, then back across two lanes and back again onto the right shoulder where she runs into a curb and stops. I am run off the road, luckily uninjured (no medical insurance). A traffic cop sees what has happened and pulls up behind her. She exits the SUV, the CELL PHONE STILL STUCK TO HER EAR yapping away!

The cop asked me about my condition as well as that of the other car run off the road. The woman is STILL yapping. When the cop goes back to her, she gets angry at him because he is interrupting! She looks OK, not wobbling or acting drunk, just arrogant. I left when the cop was calling on his radio.

My opinion? Cell phones and driving just don't mix. Feel free to use them if you want, but if caught in a situation such as this, go directly to jail and have your license revoked. Personal responsibility.

Personal responsibility.

That's so old school. :)

Glad you're OK and I'm totally with you on this one. I'll admit to occasionally talking while driving but I try to keep it short and infrequent as possible. I pay for voicemail, so I might as well use it!

There is a five-way intersection near my house that's controlled by stop signs. I go through it twice a day at its busiest (can't really call what we have here "rush hour") and everybody knows the drill. Stop, wait your turn, then go - in that order. Occasionally someone can't be distracted by waiting their turn (or even stopping) and it just makes a mess out of the timing for the rest of us. The majority of those people are just yapping away...

What, no picture? :p Many people cannot talk and drive at the same time. Heck, some people can't talk and chew gum at the same time. These people that exhibit this type of driving, should be given a very large ticket, for the first offence, and for the second offence, lose all cell phone privileges, period. I do accept calls on my phone while driving. But, my calls are always short and to the point. However, I do use a bluetooth headset, so I can have both hands on the wheel. Also, I can concentrate on my driving, while listening or talking. But, the ones that can't, shouldn't.

Ha. There's little question that cell phones interfere with one's ability to drive carefully. I believe they're banning them in Cali on July 1, though you will be able to continue using hands-free ones (I wonder what the studies show on those things' usage?). The bigger question is, what constitutes distracted driving? Eating donuts, drinking coffee, talking to passengers, applying make-up, sex, .... there's a lot of stuff that can distract.

The bigger question is, what constitutes distracted driving? Eating donuts, drinking coffee, talking to passengers, applying make-up, sex, .... there's a lot of stuff that can distract.

Yes, but cell phone usgae can be tracked. If records show that someone is on a cell phone during an accident, the vast majority of the fault goes to them. Or, at least, that's the way it SHOULD go.

FWIW, I don't talk on cell phones while driving ever. If I am expecting a call, when the phone rings I I pull over, stop the car, then check the phone. Every time with no exceptions. For me, that's just common sense.

New Law in NJ - as of March 1, 2008.

Hands free phones only

.......and the police are actively enforcing it.

Liz

Chicago has had this for awhile, but not sure if it is helping (can't hurt, I guess). No mention of reading books, putting on makeup, shaving or any of the other creative things I've seen much too often...

Once in a while you hear about someone lost in the mountains and is saved by using their cell phone. I think many more people have been killed or injured by their use by people using them while driving. Studies have been done that show they are as bad or worse than drinking and driving.
Sorry Mike but I think that everyone says they can concentrate and talk/listen at the same time.

Sorry Mike but I think that everyone says they can concentrate and talk/listen at the same time.

Good point. A lot of people think they can drive after downing a six pack too. :p However, I really can drive and talk properly, but I can't drive after even 1 beer. :rolleyes: Seriously, some people have no problem with this. When my daughter used to live here and work in on the road sales, I'd ride along once in awhile to keep her company. She had her personal cell phone and her company phone, clipped to her visor. Some days, she was constantly juggling phones. However, she never made me nervous. She was able to handle it. Unfortunately, most people can't. Whenever I get behind someone driving 5 miles under the speed limit or slowing down and then speeding up, I just know they are on a phone. In MN, they are banned for anyone 16 and under, while driving. They generally have too many other distractions, besides inexperience. Around here, they have found it's the text messaging that is causing major problems.

heheh does that include txting :D

Cripes, it would take me an hour to text the word "hi".

Using cell phone while driving has been illegal here for ages, and still I see the idiots doing it every day. I use hand free, or leave it and call back later. Depends if I remembered to charge the hands free :(

That's the nice thing about bluetooth, which most phones have these days. Just pick up an earbud, and while you're driving, you can have it set to auto answer when you get a call. You never have to touch the phone. Also, with voice recognition. you can press a button on the earbud, and make a call with your voice. My phone could be in the back seat and I can still make and receive calls, without taking my hands off the wheel or my eyes off the road.

Personal responsibility? Oh heck.... It was probably your fault for being on the road.

I'm not a big one for cell phones in general. I hope they hauled her arse away.

Well the obvious solution is to hire a driver. Man, the things I could get done if I didn't have to watch for my turn while driving....

Well the obvious solution is to hire a driver. Man, the things I could get done if I didn't have to watch for my turn while driving....

Exactly! I always say that if I win a big lottery prize the first thing I'd do is hire a chauffeur. You know, someone about 25 years old named Candi or Kristi or Cheri... You get the idea.

Bluetooth/voice recognition for me...

I've seen/ridden with some drivers who completely lose driving skills as soon as they answer the phone or make a call...it's amazing.

Not just drivers.
See them IN the supermarket and they push trollies while on the cellphone just like they drive :(

Yes, This is really true do not use the cellphone while driving. The woman was really arrogant.