Minnesota could be about to clamp down even more on mobile phone use while driving.
Several state lawmakers are proposing a ban on all cellphone use while driving, except in hands-free mode.
“Constituents tell us, and the data affirms, that we’re seeing more and more accidents as a result of distracted driving,” said Rep. Frank Hornstein, the Minneapolis Democrat who’s co-authoring the bill with Champlin Republican Rep. Mark Uglem. “We know that we’re going to save lives and prevent injuries with this type of legislation.”
Minnesota has banned texting while driving since 2008, when it was the third statewide ban in the country. Now all but four U.S. states have similar texting bans.
When debating the texting ban in 2008, lawmakers considered going further and banning handheld calls while driving as well. The final version barred only texting, browsing and other similar uses.
Minnesota, like many states without a total ban on handheld device use while driving, currently has such a ban for novice drivers.
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If it becomes law, the ban on handheld device usage would take effect July 1 and would have the same penalties as Minnesota’s texting ban: $50 for a first offense and an additional $225 for subsequent offenses. As initially proposed, it would have several exceptions, including for emergency use and for devices permanently affixed to cars, Hornstein and Uglem said.
In addition to trying to reduce people’s cellphone use while driving, the lawmakers hope the broader ban will make the state’s texting ban easier to enforce.
Minnesota law enforcement currently issue thousands of tickets each year for texting while driving. Data from the Minnesota State Patrol show these citations have gone up in recent years, as have citations issued after a crash for inattentive driving.
The bill is in the process of being introduced and will become public at some point this week.
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Uglem and Hornstein cite data and personal observations of people driving distractedly to justify the law.
“I think we’re addressing a problem that has to be addressed,” Uglem said. “I realize it’s not going to be popular. It may inconvenience a few people. But inconvenience for safety and the protection of families and loved ones is a small price to pay.”
It’s unclear whether the ban will become law. Backers say they have bipartisan support, but votes have yet to been taken.
Gov. Mark Dayton has not taken a position on the proposal. In 2015 he signed a bill that increased penalties for repeat violators of the state’s texting while driving law.
Research on the subject is clear that distracted driving can be dangerous, but it’s ambiguous whether bans such as the Uglem-Hornstein proposal make driving safer.
“We know that when states enact cellphone bans that people do put down their phones,” said Jessica Cicchino, vice president of research for Insurance Institute For Highway Safety. “What we haven’t seen is a corresponding drop in crashes having to do with people on their phones.”
Paul Aasen, president of the Minnesota Safety Council, agreed that the data isn’t “definitive” but was more optimistic on a handheld-use ban’s effectiveness.
“Having two hands free to operate a vehicle is better than one,” Aasen said. “We believe there will be a safety outcome. Time will tell.”