Distracted driving law
 

Well its sept 1 and it now in place. I really dont think its gonna stick around for the long hall to vague in some areas and leaves to much grey area's
But what Iam looking for is info on a good handsfree set for the truck that works with a blackberry torch.
Keep your heads up!

Matt

Pretty sure it will stick around, enforcement may slide but watch for cops handing out tickets today like crazy. I got eye balled pretty hard yesterday because I had my hand on the side of my face like I was on the phone. :sHa_sarcasticlol:

halleluja
 

Today is the day utopia starts. Finally we will all be saved from ourselves thanks to the dedication of hardworking politicians and bureaucrats that have crafted THEEE perfect law. This is the one that will end the carnage on hwy's. http://www.iihs.org/news/rss/pr092810.html

I say we all get this "special" training that police officers have since they are exempt from the law because of their "special" training. http://edmonton.ctv.ca/servlet/an/lo...b=EdmontonHome

Note how the "professional" says that hands free devices DO NOT reduce accidents, yet the government is encouraging their use.

Here's the money quote:
"If you're eating a cheeseburger I wouldn't recommend it but you might get a ticket based on how big it is and how long it takes you to eat it," he said.
This from an actual elected government MLA. What are they going to do, come out with a list of non-restricted, restricted and prohibited cheeseburgers?? Is there going to be a department of cheeseburger measurement? I can eat a burger pretty fast, does that mean I will be allowed to eat larger burgers than other slower eaters? I need to know if it's ok for me to eat a breakfast burrito and a bacon and egg bagel with an XL coffee. Is the bagel too drippy with Hollandaise sauce to be safe? What about an XL coffee, maybe I should cut it back to a medium or small? Hurry, quick, government, please tell me what is safe to do!!

I don't even text, but these do no good politicians and their idiocy is getting out of hand.


Oh yeah...it's illegal to pull over on the shoulder of the road to do anything too, unless it's an emergency.
30) Can I park on the shoulder of a highway to make a call?


On provincial highways, outside of an urban area, section 43 of the Use of Highway and Rules of the Road Regulation applies and vehicles are not permitted to park on the shoulder of a provincial highway except in an emergency. This is also for safety. So if you as a driver have to make a phone call, do so at a rest area, or when you stop for gas or for a bathroom break. Alternately, have your passenger make the call.

Provincial highways are typically numbered roadways (e.g., Highway 2), but they may also be known by other names (e.g., Queen Elizabeth II or the Trans-Canada Highway).

The best blue tooth I have found is the Blue Parrot. It eliminates background noise for the people you are talking to. It has volume control and has a redial button. The only con I can find is as my son puts it "You look like you work in Tim Hortons". $150 at any place they sell that stuff. I actually saw one for $110 at the Flying J in Edmonton. Trust me......it looks a little goofy but works VERY well! :)

Distracted driving
 

:sHa_sarcasticlol: So should we take bets on who will be the first AO member to get a ticket. I know I never bought anything hands free yet, waiting till the big price drop comes.LOL.

I almost got to see an accident this morning,as a result of a distracted semi driver. We were on our way to work when the vehicles in front of us hit the brakes, and then swerved into the ditch to avoid rear ending a semi. There was smoke billowing out of the semi, so we assumed that he had engine problems, until we saw the streaks of rubber on the road, and smelled the burning rubber. As we passed the semi, we could see the driver talking on the phone. apparently, he wasn't paying attention to the vehicles in front of him, then he locked up the brakes when he realized how close he was to hitting the vehicles in front that were slowing down to turn off. Reading the law as written, he would likely be exempt if he was using the phone as part of his work.

I bet the phone accesory shops are making a killing these last couple weeks. Not sure if I will go hands free or just save the money and pull over and make calls. I'm sure I will still take/make calls depending where I am.

I sometimes take calls for work on the road.
Today was one of them days. I just wedged the phone between the boobs and talked to the customers.

I tried to buy a hands free device this morning but the store had no one in the electronics dept that could help me or unlock the case.

lol
 

That seems prettyhands free to me lol

lol, FishingMom, now that visual is gonna be distracting !! :D

You could be on to something there. The bluetooth bra, with buillt in hands free. For the lady on the go. The bluetooth bra, by Ron-co

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v5...ics_thread.gif




I'm loving this. When "Yes Dear" starts her driving 101 instructions to me, I'll just hold up the hand and tell her DO NOT Distract the Driver.:sHa_shakeshout:

well I had to stick it somewhere besides to my ear, that was the best solution I could find. Kid had to be taken to school and it was after when I am normally in my office, so the calls were directed to the cell phone.

Besides if ya got em use em.

^^ Sounds like you already have a couple hands free devices. :sHa_sarcasticlol:

Your assuming because the semi driver was on the phone, thats what caused him to have to jam on his brakes. Then almost be rear ended by the vehicles behind him.
Maybe he was following to close, or the cars turning off did the usual "opps" need to turn here manauver at the last second, or maybe he was driving properly for road condiditions and traffic as it does some times just slowed down at an faster then expected pace on a highway.

It does sound from your description that the vehicles that went into the ditch to avoid the semi were tailgating. Which is one of the many reasons why we see so many vehicle collisions.

You cant' fix stupid driving, but we can blame cell phones and other electronics for our lack of skill.

Oh I think it is a brilliant idea, I just wanted to see the pics.:) You know for instructional purposes for Yes Dear.

:lol: good one Redfrog, I'll have to remember that one!

This morning after dropping off my wife at work at 5:00 a.m., and while driving back home, I slowed down for a red light. A guy driving a crew cab grey pickup coming into the intersection from my right slowed down and stopped because the light was changing to red for him. Note I said he stopped! The light turned green for me, I was first in line, so I started going ----- and the grey pickup suddenly roared ahead right in front of me :rolleye2!!! I hit the brakes and noticed the driver looked to be on the phone or doing something with his left ear. It was a good thing no one was coming through from the opposite direction to me on the green light or the grey pickup would have been T-boned.

A couple of days ago while waiting in stopped traffic for another red light I looked around at the vehicles around me. In every one of them, in three lanes (I was in the centre lane), every driver in front, beside, and behind me was either texting or talking on their phone!

If the police up here are going to pursue this law aggressively they are going to be busy writing a lot of tickets!

BTW: I do not have a cell phone, and the odd time I have my wife's with me in the vehicle I pull over if I have to make a call, and if someone calls it while I'm driving it can just keep on ringing.

FishingMOM, would you please demonstrate how that works - with pics? Just so us guys can show our wives / girlfriends / etc. how to properly apply that technique :D :innocent:

this is a stupid law, they have done studys in the u.s.a to see if this stops accidents, it doesnt, accidents will happen no matter what, millions of cars on the road and accidents happen, its a great cash grab for the province and hopefully all this cash goes towards a new arena, i knew that was there plan, if anything it will make people more nervous about driving thinking if they blink they will get a ticket, theres all ready enough photo radar cameras in alberta, i just hope i dont get a ticket when im on my camera uploading pictures to my comoutor well talking on the phone brushing my teeth well doing my hair and eating a tripple classing combo from wendys well driving, ugh

Cell phone rules are the same for truckers as for car drivers.
Were allowed to use the CB for business purposes. Actually CB's are a bit different in that they transmit a voice with out having to do anything except have it on. It means then that i dont have to return a message if im in a situation where i maybe shouldnt use it. They actually often i believe save accidents as many times im given info from oncoming trucker about a accident or road blocked up ahead over a hill or around a corner where i cant see at the time. Giving me time to get her slowed up and get in which ever lane thats freed up without upsetting the flow of traffic.
There are situations where one has to try get around a slow vehicle like maybe a combine etc. where it looks as though we are taking risks but a trucker up front is actually letting us know that its clear to go etc. I drove semi back when there were no CB's. Not sure how we did without them,they really are a tool on the road for us. The range they get out is only around a mile or 2, so one going south and one going north your not in contact long enough to actually pull over anyhow.
Anyway just giving info for any interested.
Incidentally im going into my 50th year trucking with somewhere around 6,000,000 big ones under the belt accident free and can eat ,drink coffee talk on CB whatever but im real sketchy about using the cell. I find it distracts me a bit too much. Not sure why but its not a good thing to use cell and drive anyway. Hopefully thats coming from a pro or at least id like to think im a pro:)

Well Shawn it's not really a cash grab, more like a send the cash in.:)

and it is simply a voluntary tax that some of us will never have to pay if leaves the driving to me.:)

I bought a bluetooth last year and it works fine.it did take a little while to get used to usng it all the time, the buttons are pretty easy but being on my sunvisor I usually just turn to the phone to dial and hangup which would be technically illegal.

The biggest problem I have with this law is that the ONLY thing that may reduce accidents is having both hands on the wheel instead of one when you're using your phone. Text messaging aside, having a conversation, even with a passenger in the car, distracts you from driving.

Driving and having a conversation both use the central processing area of the brain, so a bluetooth does NOTHING to help distraction. I swear this is just a scam for people to buy bluetooth, and for cops to be able to give out ambiguous tickets.

Oh well, such is life.

this will die down in the next 2 weeks and become just another law the cops will not enforce because they are short staffed and have more important things to do.

now you are catching on.

Yeah...get back to their regular job of handing out SPEEDING tickets.

not sure about where you live but in the city it's rare to see a city cop actually have someone pulled over, they leave that to photo radar.

Its about time this law is here... I am so sick of seeing people drive like morons and when you pass them they are texting or talking on their dam phone... and i'm sure when there are accidnets now they will be checking phone records... Glad it's here

I'm pretty sure a one armed amputee can get a drivers license, so what the heck is the difference if I have a conversation hands free or holding the blasted phone?

I'll be defying this bad legislation in my personal vehicle, but abiding by it in my marked company truck; the last thing I need is some busy-body calling me in and costing me my job for doing something I've been doing responsibly for 23 years (when I include CB radios, maybe 18 years on cell phones)

Looking around this morning though, I've not seen anyone holding a phone while driving though.

The problem is it will not do anything to stop the idiots on the road. I was at funeral a few weeks back and almost half of the the 20-30ish people had their heads down texting through the entire service. no respect, no common sense....

Fishin Mom..
 

"Today was one of them days. I just wedged the phone between the boobs and talked to the customers."

The wife carries all kinds of things in Hers...I was going to say.."Now that's using your Head"..But...It's not...:bad_boys_20: