News Room: SB 681: Hands Free Cell Phones
March 2012
Wednesday, March 07, 2012
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In an editorial, the San Jose Mercury News said:
Death and injuries from traffic accidents have plummeted in California, a trend tied to the 2008 law that bans gabbing on handheld cellphones while driving. Memo to all those drivers still yakking away: Wake up. Distracted driving can kill.
The number of deaths caused by driving while chattering on handheld cellphones dropped by half in the two years after the law took effect compared with the two years before, according to a study released by the state Office of Traffic Safety. That dramatic improvement should persuade 41 other states to enact similar laws. The rest already have.
State Sen. Joe Simitian, D-Palo Alto, take a bow. He pushed the bill until his reluctant colleagues agreed to pass it. Credit also goes to the California Highway Patrol and local police throughout the state for aggressively enforcing the ban. They seem to have wholeheartedly embraced it, probably because they have to deal with the heartbreak of fatal accidents.
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Tuesday, March 06, 2012
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According to a study announced Monday by the state Office of Traffic Safety, since a state law forbidding the use of handheld phones on the road went into effect in 2008, the number of traffic deaths in California declined by 22 percent. With fewer drivers yakking into handheld phones, the death-by-cellphone rate dropped an even more stunning 47 percent.
“Those are huge numbers,” said Sen. Joe Simitian, D-Palo Alto, author of the bill whose outcome the study tracked, while taking a (hands-free) victory lap after the announcement.
During a two-year period after the law was implemented, there were 53 deaths caused by drivers holding cellphones, compared with 100 in the two years before the law took effect. This came as total accidents and fatalities were down overall for reasons as varied as more cars having air bags.
“The drop in collisions was the biggest, single, year-to-year drop in the history of the state since the CHP began keeping the data,” Simitian said.
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March 2011
Wednesday, March 30, 2011
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The lawmaker who wrote California’s hands-free cellphone laws says too many motorists are ignoring it. He’s backing legislation that will make the fines and penalties a lot tougher.
Even though the hands-free law has been around for more than three years, Californians are still breaking the law calling, texting and checking emails on their handheld device while behind the wheel.
“Probably 60 or 70 percent of Californians are complying. That means another 30 to 40 percent of folks out there could do a better job,” said California Sen. Joe Simitian (D-Palo Alto).
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January 2010
Wednesday, January 13, 2010
December 2009
Thursday, December 10, 2009
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This week KLIV’s Jason Bennert is profiling people who made a significant local impact in Santa Clara County during the 2000s.
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Monday, December 07, 2009
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Long before cellphones became common, industry pioneers were aware of the risks of multitasking behind the wheel.
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September 2009
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
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State Sen. Joe Simitian -- the lawmaker responsible for California's "hands-free" cell phone law -- is one of about 200 people participating in a summit on distracted driving today (Sept. 30) in Washington, D.C.
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Tuesday, September 29, 2009
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Sacramento – State Senator Joe Simitian (D-Palo Alto) will be participating in U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood’s Distracted Driving Summit this week in Washington, D.C. The Department of Transportation has invited 200 participants from around the country to determine the best ways to reduce the number of crashes and deaths due to distracted driving.
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July 2009
Sunday, July 19, 2009
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Some states have overcome opposition to pass restrictions. Joe Simitian, a state senator in California, managed to get his hands-free legislation, an effort he began in 2001, passed in 2006.
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June 2007
Friday, June 29, 2007
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Convinced that gripping a cell phone while driving would become illegal Sunday, a customer walked into Jacob Peykar’s wireless store to beat the deadline.
Peykar said Thursday that he tried to tell his persistent customer that the hands-free law was still a year away, but to no avail. The man spent $300 at the Woodland Hills shop to deck out his wife, kids and mother with blinking blue earpieces.
“He was so convinced, I almost believed him, too,” Peykar said.
But Peykar’s customer and lots of other Californians are wrong. The law will take effect July 1 — of 2008.
Full Story on LA Daily News Website
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