State may take Lynn’s cue on ban

LYNN – State lawmakers are seeking to follow Lynn’s lead and ban automobile operators under the age of 18 from using hand-held and hands-free phones, pagers, PDAs, text-messaging devices and laptops while driving.Adults would be subject to the bill as well, but would be allowed to use hands-free devices as an alternative to hand-held phones.The bill was on its way to the House of Representatives Wednesday after being approved by the Transportation Committee on Tuesday, but an abrupt postponement was ordered so that lawmakers could have more time to study amendments.If the bill passes in the near future, penalties for junior operators would include a $100 fine and a 60-day learner’s permit suspension for a first offense.A second offense would carry a fine of $250 and a 180-day learner’s permit suspension, while subsequent offenses would fine drivers $500 and a one-year learner’s permit suspension.Adult operators would only be subject to the same monetary fines as junior operators.However, long before state bureaucrats pondered the idea, Lynn officials debated and passed a similar measure last June directly targeting drivers under the age of 18 from texting or talking while driving.City Council President Tim Phelan said since the ban has been enacted, he has heard mention from residents that teenagers have been abiding by the ban.”I spoke to two or three families who said they told their teenagers that it’s a city law to not to drive and use their cell phone, and that they have stopped doing it,” he said. “So to me, that means it’s working and that it’s another tool for parents to use.”While state officials are working on targeting adults as well as teens, Phelan said he doesn’t have plans to expand the ban anytime soon.”I’m not willing to go there just yet,” he said. “It’s really intended to target more inexperienced youth at the moment.”Phelan said he recently sent copies of the ban to local driving schools to educate young drivers.Currently, the fines in Lynn are $200 for the first offense, $250 for the second offense and $300 for the third offense.Chief of Police John Suslak previously said that officers would issue a secondary violation to drivers if they were pulled over on a separate offense, and Phelan said he plans to follow up with the police to see how many fines have been issued.As of Wednesday, Lt. Dave Brown said there are no records of fines issued to teens in the city for driving while using cell phones.In regards to the state’s attempt to ban cell phone usage, Transportation Committee Chairman Joseph Wagner and Vice-Chairman Robert Fennell of Lynn said they are hopeful that the bill will pass.”Far too often, we see tragic accidents occur when inexperienced drivers are concentrating more on their cell phones than they are on the road,” Fennell said. “I feel this law will force teenagers to focus more on learning how to drive and will save lives.”Cell phone use would be allowed in emergency situations.Phelan said the City Council would be more than willing to sit down with the state delegation and discuss the city’s ban and offer input.”It’s all about saving lives,” he said.In a 2006 study prepared by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute, it was estimated that nearly 80 percent of crashes nationwide involved some form of driver distraction, including talking or text messaging on a cell phone.These figures are directly related to as many as 4.9 million crashes, and 34,000 fatalities each year. A report by the Harvard Center for Risk Analysis in 2003 estimated that cell phone use accounts for approximately 2,600 deaths and 333,000 critical injuries each year.Currently, California, Connecticut, New Jersey, New York, and Washington prohibit the use of hand-held phones while operating a motor vehicle.In addition, 17 states currently prohibit or restrict junior operators from using cell phones while driving.