[CalBike Report] Sent at the Governor's web site

[CalBike Report]

9/13/2006

 

Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger 

State Capitol Building Sacramento, CA 95814 

Fax: 916-445-4633 

 

 

RE: SUPPORT FOR SB 1613 

 

Dear Governor Schwarzenegger: 

 

I need  to express strong support for SB 1613, a bill that would prohibit
drivers from using a handheld wireless phone while operating an automobile,
unless the phone is specifically designed for hands-free operation or when
used in an emergency, and to urge you to approve this legislative bill. 

 

I, along with the California Bicycle Coalition, support SB 1613 because it
aims to increase safety on the roadways shared by bicyclists and motor
vehicles by modifying cellular phone use in moving automobiles. While we
think that this bill is a step in the right direction, we recommend that
cellular phones be banned from use while operating a motor vehicle in
California, except for an emergency. 

Although headsets allow drivers to keep their hands on the steering wheel,
their attention is still diverted while searching for the phone in the
vehicle, dialing, conversing, hanging up, picking up a dropped phone, and/or
receiving a call. 

 

Engaging in cellular phone conversations reduces drivers' ability to
concentrate on the road. University of Utah researchers found that both hand
held and hands free cell phone users participating in phone conversations
missed twice as many simulated traffic signals as when they were not talking
on the cell phone and took longer to react to those signals that they did
detect. Research sited in Human Factors: The Journal of Human Factors and
Ergonomics Society stated that the cognitive demands of conversation were
not eliminated with hands-free devices. 

 

Automobile operators' use of cellular phones while driving increases the
risk of injury to both themselves and everyone sharing the road with them.
The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety  reported that drivers using both
hand held and hands free cell phones were four times as likely to get into a
crash that could cause injuries serious enough to land them in the hospital.


 

Thank you in advance for making our state's roadways safer for bicyclists
via your approval of SB 1613. 

 

Sincerely, 

Your Name 

Organization Name (if applicable) 

(If not on letterhead, provide address and phone number) 

 

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