The Cell Phone Dilemma...should it be convenience vs safety?

In yesterday’s paper there was an article about the new cell phone law that will go into effect for the city of Harrisburg sometime in 2010 (once the Major signs off on it). It was very interesting to read about what others thought about the law and how they will adjust to it. But of course, it had me thinking… with this New Year and the new law will people really take this seriously?

The law states that you will be fined anywhere from $100 up to $1,000 if you are caught using any electric device to talk or text while driving. You will however, be allowed to use hands-free devices for voice calls but you will get fined if you are caught behind the wheel using your phone for anything other than starting or ending a call. Police will not be able to pull drivers over solely for using a cell phone; they are only allowed to give out citations when you commit other traffic violations(running a stop sign/light, speeding, etc.).

In the article, some people were interviewed on their feeling of the new law. The responses were shocking. One motorist said, “It seems like an inconvenience, I like to talk on the phone while I drive.” Another said, “"Can I say I'm definitely not going to use my cell phone? No, but if they're really enforcing it, I guess I'm going to take an extra couple minutes in the parking garage or wait until I get out on 81." Of course these weren’t all of the responses, but I was surprised that folks felt this way about the law; to say that it will just be a huge inconvenience and if they really “enforce” the law then maybe I will think about following it, etc. I can not come to terms with the fact that we are in an era where we openly state that we will not follow the law and that is just ok. The honesty I can appreciate, but do we not respect boundaries anymore? I mean we all have seen the German commercial where the 3 or 4 girls were in the car laughing and texting on the phone and got into that horrific accident. That commercial was not for show…it was to be a REAL wake up call folks!

The Harrisburg Chief of Police was quoted in the paper saying, “This isn't going to change anything, and all it's going to do is be an additional fines." “If the Mayor signs the ordinance, police are likely to give drivers a grace period when they hand out cell phone warnings.” Maybe this is why some people are not taking this law seriously. I mean, I thought the law was the law. You have to be a law abiding citizen right or do you? Is it now ok to break the law and quote it in the paper or other forms of media that you do not plan on taking the law seriously and that just be ok? I don’t want to sound too black and white here, but this is a little hard for me to understand.

So how safe will we be if folks are planning on using their cell phones for calling and texting even though the law says you are not supposed to? What is the difference between using the phone to make and receive calls and using a hands free device? How safe will we be if folks are planning on using their cell phones on the highway instead of in the city? How do you prevent an accident from happening if you are abiding by the laws being mindful of your safety (and other folk’s safety) and other drivers are not? I guess we just have to hope that people wake up and get the fact that it should be SAFETY over convenience! Something for us all to think about in the New Year!