The Canadian Automobile Association is calling for a ban on handheld electronics for young drivers. The association wants drivers in graduated licensing programs (GDLs) to master their driving abilities before being allowed to use cell phones and iPods while driving. “This restriction is not an effort to ‘punish’ novice drivers — rather, this is a measure to help them master their driving skills, while reducing distractions,” Flewelling told reporters. “Novice drivers are subject to many restrictions as they learn to drive, such as not driving on four-lane highways and not driving during certain hours. By also restricting the use of electronic devices, such as cellphones, MP3 players and wireless hand-held devices, they can truly focus on the driving task.”
Zero obligation price quote from a trusted local dealer.
06/15, 4:48 PM
posted by:
Craig
I guess that’s not an entirely bad idea, but when I was sixteen there were no iPods– just CD players, AM/FM radios and cassette decks. An iPod is a revolutionary replacement for having to fiddle with compact discs and tapes just to hear some music while you drive. That’s even more distracting than messing with a click wheel! If iPods were around in 1996, I’d have bought an adapter for my car stereo– a very basic four speaker CD/AM/FM unit.
Using a cellphone while driving… I had one in the car since my first year of driving. I would use it to call my folks, let people know I was on my way, get directions from someone because I was lost in unfamiliar territory trying to find their house… I think the risk of driving mishaps while talking on a cellphone while driving expecially for young people are WELL publicized, but I would argue that young people need portable communications in their cars just as much as older working professionals do– for ENTIRELY different reasons.
All that having been said, if such legislation goes into effect, it should still allow the cellular phone to be transported in the car even if it is not turned on.
There are pros and cons to everything. Unfortunately, there are some young people who more safely manage driving distractions than others, but so far it has been unthinkable and insulting to suggest to have an examination required for a driver’s license to determine a person’s LEVEL OF INTENSE CONCENTRATION when an increasing number of distractions are applied around them.
I bet you sixteen year olds would generally rank very low because they are new to driving. However, once they are a few years into their driving skills, I bet that you’ll start to notice that randomly… some drivers have an aptitude for concentration in the face of distraction while others do not fare so well.
And I bet this is already in consideration by government transportation ministries around the world.
06/15, 7:51 PM
posted by:
Carlos
Would the ban be for young drivers because grown-ups all drive well while talking on their phones, or because the grown-ups are writing the rules?
06/16, 5:11 AM
posted by:
mbc
ban the use of all cell phones for everyone… what the hell is so important that you have to talk about it when ur driving? why is it the bad drivers are always on cell phones??
06/16, 1:17 PM
posted by:
Karl
If it takes legislating behavior to make people pay attention to the road, regardless of how long they’ve been driving they really shouldn’t be driving.
I’m really tired of seeing drivers put on make-up, yak on the phone, read a book and take notes while driving, in the left lane swerving back and forth.
06/18, 11:57 PM
posted by:
Craig
>>”ban the use of all cell phones for everyone… what the hell is so important that you have to talk about it when ur driving? why is it the bad drivers are always on cell phones??”
06/18, 11:57 PM
posted by:
Craig
mbc, there are plenty of reasons: checking in with another party to let them know where you are on the road, getting directions because you are lost, calling someone who is driving to tell them to turn around and come back because they don’t need to drive 20+ miles anymore, having a low intensity conversation about some business project while cruising on a straight highway in the right hand lane….
The key dilemma here is that you cannot make your in-car distraction intense enough to take your mind off the road conditions.
If the traffic suddendly gets intense or the road becomes curvy or you happen to drive into a construction zone– you shouldn’t even hold a conversation with someone in your passenger seat.
This should be obvious to all drivers. It isn’t.
It would be very stupid to ban the use of a car stereo or communications device in a car for ALL DRIVERS because not all drivers are alike.
Again, if in-car distraction it’s a problem too big to ignore we should propose a fairly straightforward test for all drivers to weed out the ones who don’t focus on the road responsibly.
Some people choose to be more distracted than others. That’s the bottom line. Unfortunately, if you’ve never driven a car before, you just aren’t used to all the things you MUST pay attention to.
The law might not be a bad thing, but I think a general distraction test for all drivers would be better.