Drivers under 18 can no longer use cellphones while driving, and motorists of all ages are banned from texting while driving under new laws signed today by Gov. Sonny Perdue.
The teen driver cellphone ban, which takes effect July 1, allows for a $150 fine and a 1 point deduction from the driver’s license points. The fine would be doubled
Drivers under 18 can no longer use cellphones while driving, and motorists of all ages are banned from texting while driving under new laws signed today by Gov. Sonny Perdue.
The teen driver cellphone ban, which takes effect July 1, allows for a $150 fine and a 1 point deduction from the driver’s license points. The fine would be doubled for those who get into a wreck while using their cellphone. Drivers of all ages who are caught violating the texting ban face the same fine, though there is no provision for a higher fine should one be caught texting in the course of a motor vehicle crash.
The teen cellphone ban, authored by Rep. Matt Ramsey of Peachtree City, was designed to eliminate a distraction faced by thousands of teens while they’re behind the wheel.
While enforcing the law may prove difficult for police officers and sheriff’s deputies, Ramsey has said he is hopeful the law will also encourage compliance in addition to mandating it.
It’s far safer to pull over and make a phone call than it is to talk while driving, Ramsey has said previously.
Ramsey authored the initial version of the bill last year following a close call near Booth Middle School in which a texting teen crossed the center line of Peachtree Parkway and nearly struck his car.
The law does allow a few exemptions in which motorists under 18 can make a cellphone call while driving, including:
• Reporting a traffic accident, medical emergency or serious road hazard;
• Reporting a situation in which the driver believes his or her personal safety is in jeopardy;
• Reporting or averting a criminal act; or
• Talking or texting on a cellphone while legally parked.
The ban on texting while driving for those of all ages was contained in Senate Bill 360, which has identical provisions except it lacks a separate fine for any motor vehicle accidents incurred while texting.
