A group of students at the University of Alberta’s School of Public Health is urging the province to declare a total ban on cellphones while driving.
“There is an overwhelming amount of evidence showing that there is no difference between driving with a hand-held device and a hands-free device,” said Isabelle Colmers, one of the students calling for the ban.
Bill 16, the Traffic Safety (Distracted Driving) Amendment Act, proposes a ban on the use of hand-held cellphones and activities like texting, reading, writing, personal grooming and puts restrictions on using other electronic devices while driving.
Drivers face a $172 fine with no demerit points if found guilty. Under the act, CB radios will be still be allowed for commercial purposes and search and rescue services and drivers could still use hand-held devices to contact emergency services.
The new legislation would not affect the official duties of emergency service personnel including enforcement, fire and medical services.
According to a press release issued by students at the School of Public Health earlier this month, driver distraction kills an average of six Albertans and injures 500 more each week.
Having a passenger beside you, students argue, makes your drive safer because they act as an extra set of eyes and unknowingly use “conversation stalling” by decreasing the volume, pace and intensity of a conversation while the driver navigates any traffic hazards.
Colmers said Bill 16 does not go far enough to curb distracted driving in Alberta.
“The issue is that you are having a conversation with someone who is unaware of the traffic conditions,” she said.
“If we’re bringing in a law that’s banning driving with a handheld device but doesn’t cover a hands free device, it’s going to be very ineffective.”
In reviewing more than 300 studies, students determined there is overwhelming consensus that the risk of collision is the same when using a hand-held or a hands-free device.
Talking on a phone while behind the wheel is comparable to driving at the legal alcohol limit, they said.
Cpl. Don Murray of RCMP Traffic Services in St. Albert said he sees this first-hand when he’s out on the road.
“It’s gotten to the point where now it’s part of my job to observe people’s driving. It’s gotten to the point where I can usually tell if someone is on a cellphone just by their manner of driving before I get up and look at them,” Murray told the Gazette last week.
“It’s a type of impairment, basically.”
Currently, distracted drivers can be found guilty of careless driving, an offence that comes with a $402 fine. But Murray said this charge is often difficult to prove.
“Basically, you have to convince the courts that somebody is, for whatever reason, driving in a careless, haphazard manner,” he said.
“That’s a higher burden of proof. That’s the problem with the current legislation as it is so I think that’s why they’re looking at a more detailed law for banning things such as having dogs in the lap or a cellphone up to your ear while driving.
Murray is also of the opinion that drivers are equally distracted whether they’re using a hands-free or a hand-held cellphone.
“As a matter of fact, there are studies that have concluded that using a hands-free cellphone is even more dangerous than a hand-held one and the reason is because it’s giving you the opportunity to multi-task even further while driving.”
He said the RCMP supports any legislation that will make the roads safer.
“I definitely would like to think that they’re giving consideration to banning hands-free as well,” he said.
As one of the last provinces to regulate driver cellphone use, Colmers said Alberta, by banning hands-free devices, has an opportunity to set the standard in North America on road safety.
“We encourage MLAs to use this evidence to create informed and effective policy,” she said. “We can reduce death and human suffering in our province. It is important for us to keep this issue alive so we can keep Albertans alive.”
