quote:

OK so does that apply to any moving violation, if there is no risk of safety to others, then the violation should be ignored, ie driving 10 mph over in a subdivision when no kids are on the street, no safety issue, no ticket.

It should. Not every traffic violation is dangerous. There are people who could drive twice the speed limit safer than some driving at half the limit.

Then the stop itself is a distraction on the side of the road, increasing the odds of an accident.

quote:

Originally posted by sigmonkey:
Agreed.

If I'm on a dark desert highway, cool wind in my hair...

Does it really matter where I stop for the night?

do you smell the warm scent of colitas rising up in the air, because you need to smell it before it's ignorable, or is the scent un-ignorable...

This law is long overdue. I worked 31 years LE in northeastern Pa. I responded to countless accidents where the singular cause was some jackass talking or texting while driving. People were seriously injured. Massive property damage, really nasty rear end collisions.
There’ve been numerous attempts to put something like this into place for decades. I recall one local legislator very vocally opposing them because, “most people can walk & chew gum at the same time.”
If you are operating thousands of pounds vehicle in an uncontrolled environment (driving amongst the general population), you should be focused on what the hell is going on around you.
After successfully completing several accident reconstruction schools, it was eye opening how many small events contributed to accidents.
At the time of my last course, the lowest speed fatality recorded had occurred at 12 mph! There is absolutely no excuse for not paying attention to what is going on around you.

quote:

Originally posted by mojojojo:
What about using it to listen to music of books & pod casts?

Then it's no different than listening to the radio. Just don't be futzing around with it while you're moving. Or sitting at a light, apparently, in this case. Find a safe place to pull over and futz with it there. The onboard nav system in my truck has a lockout that won't let you change the destination (or search for one) while the vehicle is moving.

quote:

There is absolutely no excuse for not paying attention to what is going on around you.

I agree, but there are people with two hands on the steering wheel, face forward, not doing anything other than driving that are not paying attention to anything going on around them.

quote:

Originally posted by Anush:
Tn has had a similar law for several years. Like many laws it is not enforced.

Alabama started with this law last year, and I've seen zero positive effect from it. People still play with their phones while driving, text while at red lights and you have to honk at them to get them to go on green, driving down the road while clearly holding a phone to their ear; i.e., nothing has changed other than having another law!

I was happy when it started thinking it might have a positive effect on the way drivers are locally, but nada... nothing. Just a waste. I use Siri and "voice control" to answer calls, send and receive texts, etc., all while the phone is mounted to the windshield and I don't have to touch it. Nothing different than talking to a passenger in the car. Not sure why other drivers cannot figure it out!

quote:

Originally posted by HRK:
<<snip>>
Importantly, the law does not apply to a vehicle’s built-in GPS or infotainment system.
<<snip>>

Which then makes the law useless as those are just as distracting!

quote:

Originally posted by a1abdj:

quote:

There is absolutely no excuse for not paying attention to what is going on around you.

I agree, but there are people with two hands on the steering wheel, face forward, not doing anything other than driving that are not paying attention to anything going on around them.

Well, you can't legislate stupidity, we'll always have people in that category.

quote:

Originally posted by cas:
I have this little trick I do that most drivers today don't seem to know.

I LOOK before I go.

Always, always, ALWAYS!!! If I didn't, I would likely have been dead about a year or so ago. Around here people will continue running the light up to 5 more cars after it changes red, and the po-leece are nowhere to be found. They're too busy working traffic accidents wrecks! Gee, I wonder why...