Saturday Is Cell Phone Ticket Day

Love it! I have had far too many near accidents when other drivers who are chatting away with a cell phone to their ear. I hope the police rigorously enforce the new law.

Ok, talking and texting are out, but there are a lot of other things I can do with my iPhone. Does the law address websurfing?

No kinda conversation is worth it.

Just pull over if it's THAT important.

Otherwise, get a hands free (and hopefully not one of those stay in the ear thingee's, they look so stupid! Kinda like Jordy's eye visor on Star Trek.)

About time..long overdue.

seriously, Jersey needs this real bad.

OMG A TRK!!111!

Ah, you mean the same cops that I see driving around in their patrols cars yakking away on their cells phones are now going to start ticketing everyone else for doing it too?

Pork,

You cannot equate or try to rationalize the law as it lands on citizens with the behavior of police officers.

They go through red lights and speed, you know. Does this mean everyone should?

Likewise, we understand that cops are to do several things at once in the line of duty (should they not talk on the radio? Or maybe they should pull over as they use the MDT?).

I have OnStar and I love the built in phone.

The last time I tried using my cell phone while I was driving I almost got into an accident. After that, I pulled over if I had to use the cell.

Now with the OnStar even a doofus like me can talk and drive at the same time.

Hope they zap the DeCamp driver guy who yaks on his cell & is oblivious to red lights. That was scary to see.

It's really very easy to keep a headset in the car if you don't have Bluetooth and just plug the phone in before you even put the car in D. Whether or not most people are capable of driving while talking is another story!

We could literally reduce the national debt if the cops actually ticketed everyone in NJ who is yakking on the phone without a headset!

Prof, and I use that term loosely, the cops also tailgate and do most of those other infractions in their private cars or with no warning devices (lights and sirens) none of which is legal even for them. Why with the hands free wireless options available to anyone, would I see a police officer with a cell phone to their ear? All of the above behavior of "holier than thou" infuriates me.

I'm slightly off topic.

I hope they do the same crack down after the next snowstorm and get people to clean off their cars. 2 days after the storm and I was on Grove St. surrounded by mobile igloos. The people on the roads yesterday should be embarrassed by their lack of courtesy and concern for other drivers. Lazy, rude and dangerous! One minivan was coated like a frosted cake and the woman driving had just enough cleared space to see out of the windshield.

This law doesn't fully address the real issue: any distraction, whether cellphone, nav system, radio, climate control adjustment, other passengers in car, screaming babies, barking dogs, etc, are all dangerous to safe driving.

The above post by Jim is typically wrong. Are we airline pilots making a landing, harbor pilots docking a tanker or surgeons performing an operation? Those all take 100% concentration. Can you chew gum and walk in a straight line? The problem is lack of respect for what driving a car in a crowded, 24/7, pay attention, area we live in.
This is not necessarily all of your attention, but most of your attention. There are many people who can sip their coffee, talk to someone, handle a CB radio, change a radio station, etc. The problem comes two fold, those whose balance of attention goes to something other than driving combined with a critical moment; experienced "good" drivers would still see it and spill hot coffee in their lap to avoid it if they had to.
No one out there has not had a moment of relief that "no one was coming" when they did something stupid. Most learn from it, some just go on like that's the way it is (this is more critical now with so many more cars on the road, much less chance nobody's coming). It's the latter minority that is dangerous. When you accept the responsibility of "piloting" a car instead of thinking the car will pilot itself and everybody else will get out of your way (or should), then you can take a sip and not be a hazard. Focus people, and you will know that pulling off to side of the road when your kid is choking will keep everybody alive, but don't tell me I can't sip coffee.

I'm always amazed at all the people who actually WANT to talk on the phone. Why? Why? Why? Who has that much to say that they can't say it when they get home?

What did people do before cell phones? Granted, they are useful in an emergency but most of the conversations I overhear (on the bus, in the store, in a restaurant and even at the gym) are most definitely not emergencies.

Duck, and I use that term loosely..

My point was cops in cop cars...

You cannot claim to know what they do in their private vehicles.

Some of us are self-employed and our cars become mobile offices. I use Bluetooth/voice activated all the time and even sip my latte while driving a stick....multi-tasking in the 21st century.

Profwilliams:

Honestly, I have to agree with Pork Roll with this one. Granted, sometimes we have to use our cell phones while driving in the line of duty (which is legal), but we know that there are many who chat away on cell phones while driving marked patrol cars. This shouldn't be. It's not that difficult to pull to the side of the road for a moment or two to have our conversation. Lets end the double standard.

I said they are subject to the same laws in a patrol car (speeding, tailgating, if you ever watched a trooper on the parkway in the left lane; agreed, try to call them on it and see were you get) marked or unmarked, that changes when the lights and sirens go on. Also, when living near, or recognizing local officers, it is as easy to notice their driving habits as they do yours. You might also notice the shields, that used to be for officers, but now is any relative, displayed in the windows of the most unsafe drivers, maybe again thinking they have no consequences. My infuriation is not lessened nor my loose use of the term prof.

Tpr. Truth has hit the nail on the head again. (obviously one of the good guys). It's the double standard, pull over someone for speeding as part of your job, but roar down side streets at 40 mph off duty in your own town. Bet your going to get a ticket, and yes "prof" I witness it almost everyday.

Can you chew gum and walk in a straight line?

The difference is what happens when a 150-lb person moving at 2 mph crashes into something versus a 5,000-lb vehicle moving at 35- or 65- or 80-mph crashes into something. Multitasking and/or getting distracted while moving at a high rate of speed in a hulking mass of metal and glass is much more serious of a problem than "walking and chewing gum."

Tpr. Truth (and I use that term loosely...),

This is a silly "disagreement," the point of the law is to limit driver distraction.

My simple point her is that for citizens to use the "well I've seen cops (state your favorite infraction), so why can't I" is a poor argument.

Officers are trained to do many things while driving. And unlike most folks, many spend their days driving. This is not to say some cops don't engage in unnecessary conversations, but to hold them to every standard citizens are held will prove to be unworkable in many situations.

And Tpr. Truth, if you are an officer, and since you've stated this does happen, I would hope that in addition to posting here, you are working with your supervisors to "end the double standard."

Well Jim, you just drive white knuckled down the road. I stick to the rest of the post you are quoting from. You are more dangerous.

Prof:

I agree, the excuse "well I've seen cops (state your favorite infraction), so why can't I" is a poor argument, but on the same token you should understand their frustration. Maybe it's just me, but I don't understand how holding an an officer to the same standard as a citizen is so unreasonable. I thought we were supposed to be held to a higher standard? Maybe this is part of the problem these days. Explain to me how you can in good faith issue a ticket to someone for talking on a cell phone while driving if you are doing it yourself? Don't you feel just a little bit hypocritical?

Does this extend to speeding? Running a red light? Or.... well you see where I'm going with this.

And the higher standard is that an Officer's judgement of their driving ability is perhaps better than most. Therefore, they have cars filled with "distractions."

But, as I said, I hope you are working to create some policy that can be followed to even the playing field.

(And what exactly is the "problem these days"? I can't remember a time when folks didn't complain about something cops do.... Doughnut jokes aren't a recent creation.)

But frankly, I don't really care about this too much. So whatever you guys decide cops should do is fine by me.

I'm going to Starbucks!!

I wish you would appear more often, Tpr Truth. You are my all time favorite superhero. I have often noticed cops making minor infractions--little things like not signaling before making a turn, etc. By flaunting the law, even in minor ways, cops are unintentionally sending out the message that the rules are only for suckers. It actually works against their goal of establishing a climate of orderliness.

On two occasions I have seen a Montclair Police Cruiser parked in the fire lane at Whole foods. I waited both times and, sure enough, each time the officers emerged while holding a hot cup of "official business" .

My phone is built into my car. When it "rings" it's a pleasant chime, if I want to take the call, I tap a button on the A-Pillar, the stereo or CD or Cassette mutes, and the call is let thru. The callers voice comes over the stereo speakers, and there is a hidden mike to carry my voice back. At calls end, I again tap the button on the A-Pillar and the call disconects and the stero resumes. Nothing to hold.
I can forward calls coming into home, TO the car phone.
There is no monthly fee, other than the regular home rate for long distance. Local calls are no charge. (973) area code. Outside (973) regular rates prevail.
IF IF IF it's a number I have in Speed Dial AT HOME, and the calls are being forwarded from home to the car, the car "recognizes" the callers and the caller's name scrolls across the moving marquis above the stereo that normally scrolls across the name of the song playinmg and the artist.

I'm sure you'll disagree, but I've never met anyone who truly multitasks -- just people who can 'switch modes' very quickly. That's not quite the same as multitasking though. Even if someone diverts their attention from the road even for a hundred milliseconds, if something important happens in that time, there will be trouble.

Personally, I'm pretty good about note yapping on my phone. My occasional crime is manipulating my ipod, which is FAR more dangerous because I have to look at it in order to operate it. That probably should be illegal too.

(And what exactly is the "problem these days"? I can't remember a time when folks didn't complain about something cops do.... Doughnut jokes aren't a recent creation.)

But frankly, I don't really care about this too much. So whatever you guys decide cops should do is fine by me.

After seeing a woman driving an SUV while texting and trying to turn, I am THRILLED for this law.

There are people who can successfully multitask, Kaglan, but I don't think anybody holds the opinion that it's all right to do while driving.

(Well, the site's censor program wouldn't let me post the info before. This is my second attempt.)

wally, studies have shown that people who multitask succeed but only in increasing their stress and the number of mistakes made.

It wastes time and degrades quality of output.

It is interesting to note that operating a mobile ham radio (and CB?) is excluded from this law.