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January 4, 2008
A few months ago, I admitted to text messaging while driving and stated that I was not going to do it any more because it is so ridiculously dangerous.
Apparently Britain agrees and the Crown Prosecution Service is now putting it under the category of dangerous driving which can carry a fine of $10,000 and six months in jail. (Death by dangerous driving can carry a sentence of up to 14 years in jail.)
Britain's draconian approach to the use of cell phones while driving came my attention last week which I spent in Britain attending to my father who is gravely ill. My brother and sister also took time off during the week and as we coordinated visits to hospital, there were many times when a cell phone would have helped
But there was no question of using one while driving. With a widespread network of cameras in place to monitor traffic and speeding, anyone in Britain caught using a phone has faced fines since 2003. The only exception is calling emergency services.
Initially the fine was $60 but that was upped last year to $120 and three points of the offender's license.
The ban on cell phones followed studies which found that drivers using cell phones were four times more likely to have an accident - a figure which matches the legal limit of alcohol.
Here the laws against the use cell phones while driving come in different forms. California, Connecticut, New Jersey, New York and Washington, the District of Columbia and the Virgin Islands have enacted laws prohibiting driving while talking on handheld cell phones, according to the Governors Highway Safety Association.
In Rhode Island, school bus drivers (except in emergencies) and drivers younger than 18 may not use a cell phone.
At the same time, studies in Britain have found that a number of activities - eating, smoking, map reading and tuning the stereo - are potentially dangerous when done while driving. In 2006, a woman was fined $400 and had six points docked off her license when she was charged with careless driving after being filmed applying makeup while driving.
Posted by Peter C. T. Elsworth 
at 1:35 PM to commentary
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Please be civil. Vicious comments, personal attacks and profanity won't be published.
