The cell phone ban is almost here!

As the time soon approaches for Ontario’s new ban on portable hand-held devices, it is still not fully clear exactly what is banned. The ban takes effect Oct 26, 2009, but we will receive a grace period of three months and, apparently, we will not be issued tickets until Feb 1, 2010.

We have been hearing that cell phones are banned, unless they are used in the hand-free mode. Entertainment devices, such as DVD players are also banned, if they are in the view of the driver. There will be an amendment to the Highway Traffic Act section 78 (1). The proposed addition is:

78.1 Handheld Devices Prohibited

1. Wireless communication devices – no person shall drive a motor vehicle on a highway while holding or using a hand-held wireless communication device or other prescribed device that is capable of receiving or transmitting telephone communications, electronic data, mail or text messages.
2. Entertainment devices – no person shall drive a motor vehicle on a highway while holding or using a hand-held electronic entertainment device or other prescribed device the primary use of which is unrelated to the safe operation of the motor vehicle.
3. Hands-free mode allowed – despite subsections (1) and (2), a person may drive a motor vehicle on a highway while using a device described in these subsections in hands-free mode.

This seems pretty straight forward. You cannot use a cell phone or blackberry while driving (or even when you are stuck in traffic) your car, unless it is with a hands-free device. Entertainment devices such as DVD players or even hand-held mp3 players are also banned.

There are, of course, exceptions to the rule. An obvious exception is:

4. Subsection (1) does not apply to,

1. The driver of an ambulance, fire department vehicle or police department vehicle;
2. Any other prescribed person or class of persons;
3. A person holding or using a device prescribed for the purpose of this subsection; or
4. A person engaged in prescribed conditions or circumstances.
5. Subsection (1) does not apply in respect of the use of a device to contact ambulance, police or fire department emergency services.
6. Subsections (1) and (2) do not apply if all of the following conditions are met:
   
   1. The motor vehicle is off the roadway or is lawfully parked on the roadway.
   2. The motor vehicle is not in motion.
   3. The motor vehicle is not impeding traffic.

So, as we can see, the Ontario government says that hand-held devices cannot be used while operating vehicles. If one does not have a hands-free device, they must pull off the highway and use it there, once lawfully parked and the vehicle is not impeding traffic. As mentioned before, this does NOT mean that we can use our hand-held cell phones while at a red light, or when stuck in traffic. In case of emergencies, we can still call 911 in order to contact emergency services. They have tried to make it very clear when and where we can use our devices. According to one of the government’s flyers, we can continue to use our GPS units, as long as they are mounted on the dashboard.

Now, here are some of the questions that Ontario drivers may now be thinking:

1. When mounting a GPS unit, in order to stay “lawful”, do I have to literally mount my unit to the dashboard? Can I not continue to mount it to my front windshield?
2. I can continue to use my portable mp3 player as long as it is plugged into my car’s audio system. During a conference with Transportation Minister Jim Bradley, a reporter asked if a driver were to mount his i-pod by taping it to his dashboard, would this be lawful to do so? Jim Bradley said he was not sure if this would be permitted.

These questions will hopefully be answered soon. There are going to be many new questions and concerns that arise, and I hope that the Ontario government Is up to the challenge.

Following the three month period, which is supposed to be used to educate drivers, fines will range from $60-$500. Stg. Tim Burrows of the OPP says that if a driver is caught using a hand-held device, he or she may also be charged with careless driving – costing up to $1,000, six demerit points and a driver’s license suspension. It will be up to the discretion of the police officer whether to charge a driver with distraction or careless driving – or the worst case scenario: both.

So I would like to encourage Ontario drivers to try not to use their cell phones or fumble with their radios and GPS units at all while driving. If it is necessary that you use these devices, please use the hands-free modes and hopefully this will keep our streets safer for everyone.

Cell Phone Ban Law

Most Ontarians know that a new legislation was passed earlier this year (April 22 2009) that bans all cell phones and hand held devices while driving in Ontario. What most people don’t know is that just because the bill has been passed, it does not make it law yet. The bill still requires royal assent and a raft of regulation completed, along with an education period to the public before it can be enforced as law. Speculations are indicating that this should take place sometime this fall and Traffic Ticket Solutions will be sure to inform the public when this happens.

While the legislation is not law yet, The Toronto Sun reports that Transportation Minister Jim Bradley stated that “it would be really nice to see that even though the bill has not been proclaimed and in effect yet, that people are taking it as that is what the law is.” The hope is that drivers can take this time to change their habits and adopt a safer driving regime before they can be legally pulled over and charged for this offence. The CNW Group reports that “Transportation Canada estimates that driver distraction is a contributing factor in about 20% of all collisions. Drivers who use cell phones are four times more likely to be in a crash.” The law is focused on stopping collisions that result from driver distraction, but the Toronto Star reported that Transportation Minister Jim Bradley has no intention to ban eating and drinking coffee while driving.

Once law, this legislation will ban the use of any hand held device by drivers including cell phones for talking, texting and emailing, GPS systems that are loose and not properly affixed to a dash or appropriate area in the car, MP3 players, laptops and any other electrical device used by a driver. If charged with the offence, there would be no demerit points assessed, but a conviction would be recorded on a driver’s abstract and reports are stating that fines can be as high as $500.00. There is talk that if a driver puts others at risk because of their hand held device use, that officer’s will be able to charge offenders under section 130 of the Highway Traffic Act for careless driving also. This would mean that 6 demerit points would be assessed with fines up to $1000, probable licence suspension and even possible jail time involved. For more detailed information on what is involved with a careless driving charge, visit Traffic Ticket Solutions’ Careless Driving page.

The law will not restrict any wireless communication device or any other “hands free” electronic device while driving. Some examples of acceptable hands-free devices are:

- Cell phones with earpieces, headsets and Bluetooth that operate using voice activation or plugged into a vehicles sound system.

- GPS navigation systems that are built in or properly affixed to the dashboard or another easily accessible area of the car.

- Portable media players that has been plugged into the car’s sound system

- Cell phones used in an emergency situation to call the police, fire department, and emergency medical services.

Ontario is not the first province to put a cell phone ban while driving into place. Newfoundland and Labrador, Quebec and Nova Scotia all have similar laws in place with other provinces looking to follow suit in the near future. Newfoundland was the first province to adopt the ban in 2003 and news article from CTV, seven months after the law came into effect in that province, reported that “the cell phone ban…markedly reduced the number of drivers using handheld phones while on the road, police said.” But later on in the article stated that “there has been no discernible reduction in the number of accidents…”

These types of bans have been a source of controversy because as the Canada Safety Council and the Canadian Automobile Association have indicated that hand held devices are just one of many distractions that can cause an accident. The Canadian Press reported that “The Ontario Medical Association is on record saying speaking on a phone while driving puts people at ‘a significantly greater risk’ of getting in an accident, and warns that using hands-free devices doesn’t really lower that risk.”

The proof will be in the pudding for Ontario and since the complete details of the law are still being fine tuned, we will be keeping the public updated on any information regarding when the law will take effect, any updated or exemptions, and statistics on accidents before and after the law is in place.