Readers Call Car Phones and Driving a Dangerous Mix
Dear Street Smart:
Car phones are dangerous! Since the inception of car phones, I have observed many drivers paying more attention to their phones than to driving their cars. My husband was nearly broadsided by a driver who ran a red light while talking on the phone. Most drivers do not look left or right while talking. TV sets and car phones should be illegal in cars, as they are quite dangerous.
Char Jolley
Newport Beach
You’re not alone in your concern. From another reader:
Dear Street Smart:
What are the laws governing drivers keeping their hands on the steering wheel while driving, and are they enforced? Last week, I noticed the driver in front of me using one hand to hold the car phone and the other hand to hold a map. With the popularity of car phones, this sight is liable to become commonplace.
Walter J. Halagarda
Mission Viejo
Believe it or not, no law requires that both hands--or even one hand--be on the steering wheel, said Bruce Lian, spokesman for the California Highway Patrol’s San Juan Capistrano office.
However, those tempted to say, “Look, ma, no hands!” should keep in mind that the law does require a driver to maintain control over a car at all times. Begin weaving or crossing over a lane, and a ticket could result, Lian said.
Cellular phones have witnessed explosive growth in Southern California during the past few years, but so far, they haven’t been responsible for a major increase in accidents.
“To be honest, I don’t think it really causes too much of a problem,” Lian said.
Of course, the potential for trouble is there. As phones become even cheaper and more popular, accidents because of them might increase. In turn, pressure might develop to outlaw their use in cars.
“That’s why we ask people: ‘Hey, let’s keep it the way it is and be careful. That way you’ll be able to use these things while you are driving,’ ” Lian said.
To that end, the CHP has a small booklet of tips for cellular phone users. Some suggestions from it:
- Consider a “hands-free” model that allows you to talk without holding a handset. Make sure the phone has a memory for frequently called numbers.
- Have it installed properly. It should be easily reachable and close to your line of vision.
- Know how the phone works. Insist on a demonstration and read the owner’s manual. Practice using the phone in a parked car.
- Watch traffic conditions. If traffic flow is erratic, wait until conditions improve before making calls.
- Program frequently called numbers into the phone’s memory. If you have a number of calls to return while on the road, store these into memory before driving.
- If you must dial a number, do it when the car is stopped at a traffic light or stop sign. If you must dial while driving, enter one or two numbers, check traffic, then continue.
- Keep calls brief, and don’t allow them to distract you from driving. Keep your head up and eyes watching the road and mirrors.
- Don’t take notes or look up material while driving. If notes are necessary, dictate them into a small tape recorder. Arrange to call back with information that must be looked up.
- If conversation is intense or demanding, pull off the freeway and park. Do not pull onto the shoulder to talk. The shoulder is for emergency use only.
Dear Street Smart:
Originally, when car-pool lanes were added to the Costa Mesa Freeway, there were about five recesses along the center median for police motorcycles to wait and watch for single drivers in the lane. Now there is only one. I never saw them being used. I guess that this was also observed by Caltrans and they removed all but this one.
Walter Willey
Fullerton
On the contrary, Caltrans said that CHP motorcycle officers make great use of the recesses, or small pockets along the center median where they can stand safely.
Currently, there are two along the Costa Mesa Freeway, one just north of Chapman Avenue and another just north of Warner Avenue. A third is being added between 4th and 17th streets. There are also seven along the San Diego Freeway.
Caltrans traffic analyst Joe El-Harake guessed that the recesses you saw were actually temporary construction barriers placed along the median. Those barriers may have been removed, but be assured that the other pockets are out there, El-Harake said.
Dear Street Smart:
At the southwest corner of Pacific Coast Highway and Seal Beach Boulevard are two traffic lanes and a bicycle lane. Many cars turning right on the red light onto southbound Pacific Coast Highway tend to pull into the bike lane, forming three lanes of traffic at the intersection.
This makes it dangerous for bicycle commuters like me waiting in the bike lane at the intersection, as cars either try to squeeze by or else honk at me for blocking what they see as their turn lane. Is this crossing into the bicycle lane legal? The line marking the lane is not dashed at the corner. Even if it is illegal, I don’t have much hope for any enforcement, as I have seen Seal Beach police cars making the same maneuver.
Judy Pletsch
Seal Beach
It’s not illegal for cars to enter a bicycle lane. They are allowed to do so within 200 feet of any intersection, if they are turning, or to enter and exit the roadway. The line out there is solid, as you say, but Seal Beach will have it repainted to be broken, according to the Seal Beach traffic department.
While cars can turn in that lane, they certainly should not be running bicyclists off the road. That would be interfering with a bicyclist’s right of way, according to Seal Beach Traffic Sgt. Rick Ransdell.
The prudent course might be to avoid cars altogether and move onto the sidewalk at that location, but apparently there is no sidewalk there. Another strategy might be to do the opposite: If you are currently staying close to the right, that might be giving motorists the impression that there is enough room to squeeze by safely.
Ransdell suggested you call him to see what remedy might be found for that location. Good luck!
