Governor signs law banning teen drivers from using cell phones, iPods

cellphones14_020_mac.jpg 17 year old Galileo High School student, Allan Quach, will one of the people affected with the newly signed bill, prohibiting 16 and 17 year olds from driving while talking on cells. HIs friend Leo Tang, 17 in the back. Teenagers in California will no longer be able to use cell phones, PDAs, iPods, laptops or any other electronic devices while driving, under a bill signed Thursday by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger Photographed in, San Francisco, Ca, on 9/13/07. Photo by: Michael Macor/ The Chronicle Mandatory credit for Photographer and San Francisco Chronicle No sales/ Magazines Out less cellphones14_020_mac.jpg 17 year old Galileo High School student, Allan Quach, will one of the people affected with the newly signed bill, prohibiting 16 and 17 year olds from driving while talking on cells. ... more Photo: Michael Macor Photo: Michael Macor Image 1 of / 5 Caption Close Governor signs law banning teen drivers from using cell phones, iPods 1 / 5 Back to Gallery

Teenage drivers would be prohibited from using their cell phones, iPhones, pagers, laptops or other popular communications gadgets under a new law signed this afternoon by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger.

The legislation would take effect on July 1 for drivers under the age of 18.

California joins more than a dozen other states with similar laws restricting teens from using cell phones and other "mobile service devices" while driving.

The California law imposes a fine of $20 for a first offense and $50 each time after that. Traffic officers will not be allowed to pull over a driver exclusively for the cell phone violation, according to the California Highway Patrol.

Sen. Joe Simitian, D-Palo Alto, who pushed through legislation last year that would require all drivers to use hands-free communication devices also beginning July 1, said he believes that cell phones pose the greatest risk to drivers.

"I know that driving and having a cell phone are a rite of passage for our children, but the combination is clearly a deadly one," he said today.

Simitian has cited a recent survey by the American Automobile Association and Seventeen magazine in which about 30 percent of teens polled admitted to being distracted when driving while either sending text messages or talking on cell phones.

Still, Matt Sundee, transportation analyst with the National Council of State Legislatures, said that there's no clear data linking cell phone use with traffic accidents.

"There's usually strong physical evidence at a crash site linking drunk driving or the lack of a seat belt to the accident," he said. "It's really not that way with cell phones. Cell phones are usually self-reported or by witnesses, so what data there is is controversial."

Some teens, however, see the need for the new law even without hard numbers, said Craig Cook, an eighth-grade history teacher at a junior high school near Sacramento.

As part of a civics lesson, Cook's class last spring analyzed Simitian's bill and argued over its merits. The result was overwhelming support for the bill, which the students formally submitted to the Legislature during hearings on the measure last spring.

"It surprised me," said Cook. "I try as a teacher not to assume too much and you'd expect most of the kids would think of this as a horrible intrusion in their lives. But by a two-to one vote, they supported the bill."