Comments on: Today’s The Day. Put That Phone Down While Driving In California, Or Pay $20

By: Don

Don — Sat, 30 May 2009 01:35:40 +0000

Sad thing is – most people can’t walk and chew bubble gum at the same time… having them drive AND talk on a cell phone just exacerbates their danger to life and limb.

Yeah, they should increase the fine to an amount that’s REALLY going to deter them from using cell phones or other devices in their vehicles. Fine them $500 for the first offence… then, take their vehicle away for a period of time if they get caught again. That should do the trick!

Come on… how important can a call be anyway? Is it worth your life… or someone else’s?

That’s the real question, isn’t it?

By: Burak

Burak — Thu, 07 Aug 2008 21:01:32 +0000

Don’t worry, the oil sheikhs are going to ban driving soon with their $200 oil.

By: mopocket » Blog Archive » Get Pulled Over For Driving WIthout A Head Set? Get A Free One… And Still Be A Danger

Fri, 01 Aug 2008 15:14:22 +0000

[...] ear. I personally know 5 people who over the past year have gotten pulled over for such an offense. Very recently California and Washington just joined their east coast brethren in banning cell phone cusping while [...]

By: Harald Felgner

Harald Felgner — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 15:54:30 +0000

As a matter of fact, the danger is not primarily in using one hand for holding up the phone but in immersing yourself into the conversation and into the distant world of your communication partner.

It’s simply dangerous using the phone in your car. And it’s dangerous approaching others using their phones. That nothing ever happened to all of us – and I used to use my cell phone a lot during driving time – is statistics and luck.

By: Responsible

Responsible — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 15:42:41 +0000

@Consequences: I believe smoking while driving is banned in Norway.

@no: I thought BMWs were activated by the driver holding a phone to his ear – for me it’s an almost daily occurrence to follow one for miles until they hang up and notice that someone’s waiting to overtake…

All countries in Europe have had a handsfree-only law for some time now, with the exceptions of Russia and Sweden.
In Sweden the supposed justification is that handsfree is also dangerous – strange logic…

There are enough irresponsible people around to make some restrictions necessary for the safety of others.
Can’t understand some of you freedom-(for-me)-at-all-costs types…

By: Geek And Poke

Geek And Poke — Wed, 02 Jul 2008 10:56:45 +0000

Hands-free…

See TechCrunch and Matthew Miller about the new hands-free laws. (Cheer up! In Germany we have a hands-free law since a long time) Download handsfree.comicdoc…

By: Phil

Phil — Wed, 02 Jul 2008 07:48:27 +0000

The tickets actually prob more like $93 after surcharges.. so Id double check. a seat belt ticket is $20…but after fees its $93. The state of california even profits of the victims of september 11th.. the have a $20 sept 11th security surcharge on every ticket since like 2002.. to cover “enhanced security” due to terrorism threats. yet the traffic court in the south bay is done out of basically a trailer with not even a metal detector.. some enhancement… oh yeah and security for night court costs $1 a ticket.. or 1/20th of what they are getting per ticket then they get for day court. can you say windfall for changing nothing..

By: Jim

Jim — Wed, 02 Jul 2008 01:11:54 +0000

“some studies have shown that talking on hands-free devices are just as dangerous as talking on cell phones regularly.”

Exactly right. Which is why there should be a complete ban on mobile use while driving.

By: JC John SESE Cuneta

JC John SESE Cuneta — Wed, 02 Jul 2008 01:09:22 +0000

Here in the Philippines… well, here in the Philippines… forget about it.

But they strictly implement “No Mobile Texting/SMS and Calls while walking in the streets”, I was almost caught one time haha :p

By: Peter

Peter — Wed, 02 Jul 2008 00:48:34 +0000

@Michael Arrington – The thing is that with new technology comes new laws. If enough people are killed or injured or involved in accidents while talking or texting then a law should be put in place, but with the invention of the cell phone no one could have forseen the need for such a law. There was a warning to all this, it’s not like TechCrunch is breaking an exclusive. People do have time to change their ways before these laws start taking effect.

@Dave – thanks for the clarification on the fine charges – hopefully those amounts WILL cause people to think twice.

By: Peter

Peter — Wed, 02 Jul 2008 00:43:24 +0000

Yeah, I also think that study is bollocks. How can talking on a hands free be as dangerous as driving with one hand? I’m actually surprised it’s taken California this long to adopt a law that should have been in place years ago, although a $20 fine won’t cause many to change their ways.

By: Hands Free | (d)N0T - dream not of today

Hands Free | (d)N0T - dream not of today — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 23:41:21 +0000

[...] days later, the California ban on talking on your cell with your hand went into effect. A meager $20 for your first offense, driving while distracted is less expensive in San Francisco [...]

By: nemrut

nemrut — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 22:37:47 +0000

It’s about time. This is what the government is good for – implementating laws that prevent people, who are either too dumb or selfish, from doing stupid things that negatively impact the lives of others.

By: California, Washington and I Agree, Put You Cell Phone Down! » The StartUp Blog at PartnerUp

Tue, 01 Jul 2008 22:01:49 +0000

[...] one of their statewide bans on use of handheld mobile devices in the car, according to a TechCrunch post this morning. Offenders will be charged a $20 fine, nothing too financially draining, which is a [...]

By: losertron

losertron — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 21:03:06 +0000

eCurmudgeon – your a loser.

By: Michael Arrington

Michael Arrington — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 19:27:19 +0000

Al Ramirez – right. except yesterday i wasn’t a bad person for talking on my cell phone in the car. today I’m guilty of a crime. death isn’t funny, but laws sure are.

By: Dave

Dave — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 19:18:35 +0000

Could you please put a little disclaimer in the post….the ticket amount depends on which county in CA you get caught in. It’s $97 for adults in San Diego county and $211 for subsequent offenses. I believe the fine is also about $100 in the Bay Area. $20 is simply the minimum required by the state.

By: Lacy

Lacy — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 19:05:10 +0000

While I don’t think this will make a huge difference, I think it’s a good effort to ensure that drivers are more cautious and safe while on the road. Any little bit helps, and it’s not that great of an inconvenience to have to use a bluetooth headset..so why not? I don’t see why people have such ill feelings towards this new law.

By: Andrei Potorac

Andrei Potorac — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 18:57:02 +0000

So we’re all waiting for the day when we can use telepathy?

By: Al Ramirez

Al Ramirez — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 18:24:02 +0000

Your picture if it is an attempt to be funny is actually crass and makes fun of very serious issue.

The next time TC wants to make fun of something the staff should consider if it is a life or death issue… Reckless Driving can be Life or Death. Ask the parents of the car load of teenagers who were killed last year because the driver (a teenage girl) was texting her boyfriend and talking on the phone while driving.

You guys are such a disappointment so often for what is supposed to be a smart group of people. You guys should know there are better ways to make a point.

By: narcomarco

narcomarco — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 18:05:24 +0000

@ PR NY: Who knows we may not even have to worry about staying on the road – http://news.bbc...ogy/7481940.stm

By: Jason

Jason — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 17:57:15 +0000

@Aaronontheweb Really? Well crap. maybe I wont try to get by until I move to Austin. I was thinking, I will just put my iphone speaker on and put it resting on my shoulder. That is how I talk at home when I am typing away.

By: Bob

Bob — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 17:30:32 +0000

It’s not just a $20 fine. You have to pay a court surcharge for processing the ticket which puts the total cost at around $100 for the first offense in Los Angeles County. The second offense doubles the fine with another increase in the surcharge.

By: Brandon

Brandon — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 17:16:53 +0000

The base fine for the FIRST offense is $20 and $50 for subsequent convictions. According to the Uniform Bail and Penalty Schedule, with the addition of penalty assessments, a first offense is $76 and a second offense is $190.

By: Tony

Tony — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 17:15:34 +0000

But reading a newspaper or a book, working on your laptop, or putting on makeup are still OK.

What’s stupid about this is that there were already laws in place against driving while distracted. Now, we’re going to have to ban everything individually.

But, it always feels better to create new laws rather than just enforcing existing ones. Makes the voters feel like the politicians are actually doing something.