By Susan Dickson
Staff Writer
CHAPEL HILL – In a move that could lead to a ban on cell phone use while driving in Chapel Hill, the Chapel Hill Town Council voted 6-2 to draft a local ordinance of such a regulation for consideration.
Council members Laurin Easthom and Gene Pease voted against the measure. Mayor Mark Kleinschmidt was not present due to illness.
In June, Krista Slough, a UNC student who was seriously injured in a car accident last year, and Joe Capowski, a resident who witnessed the accident, petitioned the council to consider the ban. Capowski alleged that the driver of the car that hit the victim was talking on her cell phone at the time of the accident.
In February 2010, council member Penny Rich had raised a petition for such a ban, but the council postponed the measure while waiting on a report from the N.C. General Assembly, which was considering restricting talking on cell phones while driving but has not acted on the matter. Texting while driving and the use of cell phones by drivers under 18 are both already illegal in North Carolina.
Council members expressed concern regarding whether the town had the authority to regulate cell phone use while driving, as well as the town’s ability to enforce the regulation.
“I think there’s clearly a concern throughout this country, and I think throughout the world, in terms of using cell phones in vehicles while they are moving,†council member Matt Czajkowski said. “The issue that we’re facing is the pragmatic question of whether we can do it in Chapel Hill or not.â€
Town Attorney Ralph Karpinos said he would request an opinion from the state attorney general’s office regarding the town’s authority to regulate the use of cell phones on town streets and state highways within the town. A number of streets in Chapel Hill, including Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, Franklin Street and Estes Drive, are state-owned highways.
Rich said she felt that Chapel Hill should lead the state with such a regulation.
“For me, the biggest problem with talking on the phone [while driving] … is public safety,†she said. “I am very concerned every year when 30,000 kids come to school bringing 15,000 extra cars.
“It’s just a dangerous setting. It’s a small town with a lot of cars with people on the phone.â€
Easthom said she felt the regulation had the potential to be very confusing for residents, since it might apply only on certain streets.
“My broader question is, where does it all end?†she said. “There are so many things that we should not be doing that we don’t currently have ordinances against. … People assume their own personal responsibility for their actions.â€
“Where do we stop legislating what we shouldn’t be doing?†she added.
A group from the UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health made a presentation to the council regarding the risks of phoning while driving, citing data that likens the danger of cell phone use while driving to that of drunk driving. Other residents questioned whether the town would be able to enforce a ban, and whether it should spend taxpayer money on a potentially unenforceable regulation.
If the council decides to consider the drafted ordinance, it will call a public hearing regarding the regulation.