Greer City Council will take up the issue of distracted driving Tuesday night at 6:30 at City Hall. The public is invited to comment, speak for or against the proposed ordinance.
Councilwoman Judy Albert (District 6) told city officials she would like an ordinance submitted for discussion on distracted driving.
"There is very little you could bring to me that would get me to vote for banning any kind of electronics in a vehicle."
Councilman Wryley Bettis (District 5)
"It’s a good policy but not a good law to text and drive."
Councilman Jay Arrowood (District 1)
• Public invited, 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, at City Hall to comment, or speak in favor or against.
Drivers in the city of Greer will have both hands available to use on the steering wheel if an ordinance to prevent the use of hand-held electronic devices for texting is passed.
City Council will take up the issue Tuesday that could outlaw talking, texting, and emailing on any hand-held device while operating a motor vehicle. Pending city council’s approval after two readings, the ordinance could go into effect July 1.
The public is invited to comment or speak for or against the proposed ordinance Tuesday at 6:30 p.m. at Greer City Hall.
Councilwoman Judy Albert (District 6), during a Council Retreat, asked the city to provide an ordinance limiting the use of mobile phones while driving to improve the safety of the community. “It’s (texting) the leading cause of teenage accidents and 23 percent of auto collisions involved cell phones,” Albert said citing national statistics.
Albert said her vision of a distracted driving ban, “would protect the users, drivers beside and behind them. Texting is distracting because it takes visual, manual and mental concentration.”
Ed Driggers, City Administrator said, “We’re not going to reinvent the wheel with this ordinance.” In fact, it’s the same ordinance with similar wording and penalties as the City of Clemson adopted in 2010. The penalty will include a fine of $100 or 30 days in jail or both with court costs.
The Greer ordinance is worded to prohibit “motor vehicles” but did not specifically include motorcycles, mopeds or bicycles. Hands-free devices would be allowed for drivers to use the GPS function while driving.
City officials had communicated with Clemson and asked how its police agency enforced the laws, a concern Greer police had expressed while the city of Greenville was adopting its handheld ordinance that went into effect April 1.
City officials ordered police and employees not to discuss the ordinance, Clemson’s policy or offer comments on enforcement to GreerToday.com.
City Councilmen Wryley Bettis (District 5) and Jay Arrowood (District 2) had plenty to say.
“There is very little you could bring to me that would get me to vote for banning any kind of electronics in a vehicle,” said Bettis.
“I think it’s setting up another law that is unenforceable,” said Bettis. “It’s virtually impossible, when one has an accident, to obtain texting and cell phone records because of privacy rights.” Bettis was referring to a clause in the ordinance giving an arresting officer with probable cause to request the handheld device to determine whether the violation occurred at the time of the incident.
“It’s a good policy but not a good law to text and drive,” Arrowood said. “I don’t think (the law) will be beneficial. It’s difficult to enforce after the fact. It’s very difficult for police officers to ride around and look for someone on the cell phone.”
Arrowood said he hasn’t seen statistics to defend the banning of mobile devices while driving. “I hear statistics claim you are more likely to be in an accident than not if texting,” he said.
Last week the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), reported it estimates that 3,328 people were killed and an estimated 421,000 were injured in distraction-related crashes in 2012.
“It’s kind of a trendy issue,” Bettis said. “I would like to see the (city) statistics on the number of deaths caused by cell phone or texting while driving.”
Greer does not keep the statistics Bettis would like to see. “But locally I would like to ask for a measure for accidents caused by (distracted) driving,” Albert said.
April is National Distracted Driving Awareness Month that coincides with the Department of Transportation's $8.5 million first-ever, national advertising campaign (April 10-15) and law enforcement crackdown to combat distracted driving.
“I think our resources would be better spent using educational resources,” Arrowood said. “Even when you’re paying attention people run off the side of the road. How do you correct that? Let’s teach people how to drive in a downpour (how to handle hydroplaning) and come out of that OK.’
The education Arrowood refers is reflected in the GPD earning the 2012 Municipal Association of South Carolina Achievement Award for Public Safety for its educating young drivers on safety with the city’s “Alive at 25” program and “Simulated Impaired Driving Experience (SIDNE).”
“You’re got to draw the line somewhere. Let’s do it with education. Put up signs or messages to educate drivers,” Bettis said.“You’re not going to put an end to it. The state will be coming down with a law against texting soon anyway.” Thirty-nine states and the District of Columbia have a law prohibiting all drivers from text messaging.
Arrowood said he takes education directly to his sons. “As a parent I tell my boys (16 and 21) don’t text and drive. I tell them don’t play the radio so loud they can’t hear what is going on around them. And when the light turns green, don’t go right away.”