Ann Arbor City Council postpones vote on cell phone ban

It will be another two weeks at least before Ann Arbor City Council members get a chance to vote on a new ordinance banning the use of cell phones while driving.

City Council Member Stephen Rapundalo, D-2nd Ward, the sponsor of the measure, asked council to postpone a vote scheduled for Monday night while some revisions are made around the issue of two-way radios.

He told council members that the revisions would not change the spirit of the proposed ordinance.

The vote to postpone the action was 8-1 with Marcia Higgins voting against the measure.

The City Council in February approved the first reading of a new city ordinance that would impose a $125 fine on people ticketed for using cell phones and similar devices while driving or bicycling.

The ordinance bans motorists and bicyclists in Ann Arbor from using "any device" to do any of the following:

* Talk to or listen to another person. * Create, send, transmit, read or listen to a text message, verbal message, oral message or electronic message. * Leave a recorded message. * Create, send, transmit, review, read a map or other image, whether or not the image or map includes or is accompanied by written or oral messages. * Use the Internet.

Police hope to make using a cell phone a primary offense, meaning officers can pull someone over for it. The offense would be a $125 ticket. The fine would go up to $300 if an accident were involved.

The council held a brief public hearing on the proposed ordinance Monday night. Two speakers, including Nancy Merdzinski, the executive officer of the Ann Arbor Area Board of Realtors, presented concerns.

Merdzinski said her organization had voted to oppose the measure earlier this month for several reasons, including the fact that members believe it is an issue better addressed at the state level. She said having a local ordinance would be “unfriendly and unwelcoming to visitors.”

The public hearing will be continued in two weeks. A vote could take place then as well.

Later in the evening, City Council Member Tony Derezinski pointed out several other communities have passed similar bans.

David Jesse covers K-12 education for AnnArbor.com. He can be reached at davidjesse@annarbor.com or at 734-623-2534.