Texting-driving ban pondered by city officials
Before she leaves office, the mayor hopes Houston will consider adopting a law already passed in 46 states
Officials are mulling a citywide ban on texting while driving that they hope will bring Houston in line with more than 40 Texas cities and most states that have bans.
Officials are mulling a citywide ban on texting while driving that they hope will curb distractions, reduce road fatalities and bring Houston in line with more than 40 Texas cities and most states that already have such a law.
It’s not the first time Houston officials have broached the issue; Mayor Annise Parker has long lobbied to impose a Texaswide texting-while-driving ban. But months after another legislative session with no action, term-limited Parker said she will ask council members to consider a local ban before she leaves office at the end of the year.
The danger of using cellphones while driving is well documented, increasing crash risks by more than 23 percent, according to the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute. In 46 states and the District of Columbia, texting while driving already is banned. Though Texas is one of the few states without such a law, 40 cities including San Antonio and Austin have already opted to enact a local ban.
The city’s public safety committee considered those statistics and two proposed laws Thursday: the first a citywide ban on texting while driving and the second an effort to enforce the existing state ban on texting and cellular phone use in school zones by posting signs. Parker has faced some criticism in recent months because the city has not installed school zone signs, citing costs, and had issued no
“It’s not a perfect ordinance if we pass this. But it is something that I think would save lives.”
Robert Gallegos, city councilman
citations as of September.
“We ought to ban it citywide; that would certainly be my preference,” Parker said earlier this fall. “But I don’t know where the council is on this, and it is certainly a big policy initiative. I think we should have banned it statewide, so of course I’m supporting it here.”
Posting citywide signage is also significantly cheaper than doing so in school zones, according to Jeffrey Weatherford, deputy public works director. There are nearly 8,000 school-zone entry points, costing between $1 million and $1.4 million to appropriately alert drivers. State law prohibits handheld cellphone use in school zones, but the city has not installed the warning signs to enforce that ban.
But if the city were to opt for a Houstonwide ban, it would need to mark just 44 entry points with two signs, costing about $55,000.
While the Parker administration directed the public works department to study the cost of a texting ban, Weatherford said he will recommend City Council take up a prohibition that covers all cellular phone use while driving.
Under such a ban, drivers who were ticketed would have a defense if they are using the device to make an emergency call, if the vehicle is stopped or at a red light or if the device is hands-free. City Council would have discretion in setting a fine, but Weatherford said the misdemeanor could mirror the school zone ban that comes with a maximum $200 penalty.
At-large Councilman Jack Christie lauded the citywide ban idea, saying officials “have to take the bull by the horns.”
“I’m for smaller government, but this is like seatbelts and helmets,” Christie said. “We can afford it. We can’t afford not to do it. It’s going to save injuries and lives.”
Councilman Robert Gallegos said he supports a ban but has lingering questions about how it would be enforced.
“It’s not a perfect ordinance if we pass this,” Gallegos said. “But it is something that I think would save lives.”
Michael Payne, executive director of Bike Houston, pushed council members to pass a more stringent law. He noted that many states approved texting bans before mobile devices offered the multitude distractions that they do today.
“We need to make the ban so that it covers handheld devices while the vehicle is moving,” Payne said. “If you do that, we have a chance of being effective. If you pass a texting ban, it’s going to be incredibly difficult to enforce. It’s not going to get us anywhere. So think carefully about that.”
Janice Evans, a spokeswoman for the mayor, said in an email the plan is still to bring one of the two texting bans to City Council before Parker leaves office.