News Regarding the Center
Hands on the Wheel, Not on the BlackBerry Keys
New York Times
May 05, 2007
. . . Some states already ban talking on a cellphone behind the wheel unless a headset is used, and Washington joined that group yesterday. But while reading or other distracting activities may not actually be illegal behind the wheel, more legislators seem to be worried about the danger of multitaskers tapping away without coming to a stop.
Mobile texters in the United States sent 158 billion messages last year, up 95 percent from 2005, according to industry statistics. There is no data on how many are typed or read by drivers, or how often the activity leads to collisions. . .
''There's a challenge for law enforcement,'' Governor Gregoire said.
For some, the greater challenge may be to exercise impulse control on the road.
James Katz, director of the Center for Mobile Communication Studies at Rutgers University, says he doubts that many multitaskers will keep both hands on the wheel.
''Only the most angelic drivers,'' he said, ''will be able to resist the temptation.''
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