State lawmakers driven to ban distractions

BARRE, Vt. – Put down the flute and keep your eyes on the road.

And forget about sipping that cup of coffee on the way to work, or smoking a cigarette on the way home. In some states, it could soon be illegal – if it isn’t already.

Emboldened by the passage of cell phone bans for drivers in some communities, states are turning their attention to other things that drive motorists to distraction.

Vermont lawmakers are considering a measure that would ban eating, drinking, smoking, reading, writing, personal grooming, playing an instrument, “interacting with pets or cargo,” talking on a cell phone or using any other personal communication device while driving. The punishment: a fine of up to $600.

Similar bills are under consideration in Maryland and Texas, and Connecticut has passed one that generically bans any activity that could interfere with the safe operation of a motor vehicle.

“Cell phones attracted people to this issue,” said Matt Sundeen, a transportation analyst with the National Conference of State Legislatures. “Now that people are more focused on distracted driving issues, they’re beginning to talk about the broader range of distractions.”

For the sponsor of the Vermont bill, the motivation came from his own observations.

“What finally pushed me over the edge was when I was at a stop sign and somebody opposite me was trying to navigate around the corner with a cell phone to the ear in one hand and a cigarette in the other, and she wasn’t doing very well,” said Republican state Rep. Thomas F. Koch.

He said his wife recently saw a driver playing the flute, which led him to include the instrument ban in his bill.

“There are a lot of bad habits out on the road. This isn’t just for drivers’ own good. This is to protect the other people on the road,” he said.

Often, they need protection:

“In Illinois, a bicyclist was killed by a driver who had been downloading cell phone ring tones while behind the wheel last September.

“In Westminster, Calif., a 7-year-old boy was struck and killed by an SUV whose driver lost control as he was trying to reach a cell phone and plowed into a family at a bus stop Nov. 29, authorities said.

“In 2005, Clifford L. Helm, of Deer Park, crossed a highway median and struck a truck head-on, severely injuring Jeffrey Schrock and killing five of his children.

Spokane County Prosecutor Steve Tucker has said Helm was using his cell phone just before or during the crash.