With poll: Ann Arbor cell phone ban moves forward with revisions

Council Member Stephen Kunselman, right, listens to expert Paul Green talk about the dangers of distracted driving Monday night.

Ryan J. Stanton | AnnArbor.com

Kunselman, D-3rd Ward, worries a proposed ordinance banning the use of cell phones while driving could send him and others back to using those "archaic" paper maps, which arguably are a bigger distraction.

That's just one of the concerns expressed over the city's proposed ban on cell phone use while driving. The issue came up again at Monday's City Council meeting.

"I'm having trouble with the ordinance," said Council Member Sandi Smith, D-1st Ward. "I would prefer to see this done on the state level. I get the safety part ... but I really would rather have it dealt with at the state level and have it be part of the Michigan Vehicle Code. I don't think it's appropriate for us as a city to tackle this."

The resolution to implement the ban is being sponsored by Council Member Stephen Rapundalo, D-2nd Ward. His resolution was expected to come back for a second reading and adoption Monday, but instead he introduced a newly revised version for first reading. The new version takes into account feedback he's received since the last meeting on the cell phone ban.

The new version was approved at first reading Monday night, but several council members said they weren't sure they'd be supporting it at second reading. 

If approved, the ordinance would take effect 60 days after its legal publication.

Rapundalo invited two experts to the podium Monday night: Police Chief Barnett Jones and Paul Green, a professor from the University of Michigan's Transportation Research Institute who specializes in research on driver distraction.

Green told council members substantial documentation shows using cell phones and portable navigation systems while driving - especially doing data entry of any kind - increases the risk of crash.

"The most notable is texting, which seems to increase crash risk by a factor of 14, which is huge," he said.

Jones told council members he's hoping to make "operating a cell phone while driving" a primary offense in Ann Arbor, meaning city officers can pull someone over just for being on their cell phone - they don't need any other reason.

The offense would be a $125 ticket. The fine go would go up to $300 if an accident was involved.

Green acknowledged Monday night there's little difference - in terms of distraction level while driving - between hands-free technology and handheld technology. That's because the distraction is not so much that the hands are occupied, but that the mind is occupied, he said.

Council Member Marcia Higgins, D-4th Ward, said if that's the case, then hands-free technologies should be banned, too. The ordinance as currently written would exempt using cell phones if it's done hands-free.

Jones said a handheld ban is a good place to start and would get younger drivers in the habit of not texting or playing games on their cell phones while behind the wheel. He said it also allows people to take care of business while driving if they have a Bluetooth headset, which Jones acknowledged he uses.

The revised resolution states the use of a cell phone or "other portable electronic device" is prohibited while operating a motor vehicle or bicycle. The ban restricts drivers and cyclists from using such devices to do the following:

• Talk or listen to another person.
• Create, transmit, read or listen to a text, voicemail, or any other digital message, including e-mail.
• Perform other non-driving tasks besides selecting and playing music, including but not limited to: playing electronic games, viewing movies and transcribing notes.
• Type into or otherwise operate a navigation system.
• Use the Internet.

The list of "electronic devices" banned from use while driving or riding a bicycle include:

• A mobile or satellite telephone or any other electronic object commonly known as a wireless, cellular, digital telephone or smart phone.
• Any type of paging device or personal digital assistant.
• Any video game or digital photographic equipment.
• Any type of portable computer.
• Any portable navigation system, including but not limited to any equipment commonly known as a global positioning system or GPS.

The ordinance would allow use of electronic devices in the following circumstances:

• The person is using a hands-free electronic device, and the electronic device is not hand-held.
• The person uses the electronic device to communicate with or obtain directions to a police department, a fire department, an authorized emergency vehicle, a hospital, or a physicians office, during an emergency situation.
• The person uses the electronic device while performing his or her official duties as a police officer, a member of a fire department, or the operator of an authorized emergency vehicle.
• The person uses the electronic device while the motor vehicle or bicycle is stationary in a location that is not within the portion of the highway that is intended for the purpose of moving traffic and that is a legal place to park, stop, or stand a motor vehicle or bicycle.
• The person uses the electronic device while performing his or her duties as a volunteer in the Radio Amateur Civil Emergency Service.

Green said people feel the need to use cell phones while they're driving because everyone is so busy these days.

"Unfortunately that puts others at risk who aren't phone users and is unfair to them," he said. "We're seeing lots of new technology like iPhones that pretty much let you do anything while you drive - spreadsheets, play video games, check your stocks - and none of those tasks are essential to driving and therefore shouldn't be done while driving because they add crash risk."

Green addressed the common complaint that talking on a cell phone is no different than talking to a passenger in a car. He said it's actually proven to be vastly different because a passenger in a car is aware of what's going on and can help pay attention to the road, while someone on the other end of a phone conversation may not even know the other person is driving.

As far as navigation systems, Green said little distraction comes with looking at a map or listening to directions from a GPS. He said the problem occurs when someone starts trying to input addresses while driving.

"With navigation systems, it's not reading the map that really creates problems," he said. "The real problem with navigation systems is entering the destination, typing in the street address, typing an intersection, searching through long lists of potential destinations to find the one you want. Those are really the problem tasks."

Jones cited a report by the National Traffic Safety Board that estimated nearly 24,000 Americans had died by 2004 because they were operating a motor vehicle while on a cell phone. He said he's sure the numbers are even greater now.

He noted more than 80 percent of accidents that were reported in the United States in 2007 were because of distracted driving.

"In that same year, 21 percent of the fatalities between the ages of 16 and 19 were young adults that were utilizing a cell phone," Jones said.

"It has become a major, major cause of traffic accidents, injuries and deaths. I had a near-miss not too long ago and I definitely went to a Bluetooth and I'm not saying Bluetooth is better. I know it's not."

Ryan J. Stanton covers government for AnnArbor.com. Reach him at ryanstanton@annarbor.com or 734-623-2529.