A city traffic panel on Wednesday proposed a ban on handheld cellphone use while driving inside the city limits, a measure that now moves on to the City Commission for consideration.

The Amarillo Traffic Commission passed a motion that would extend current restrictions prohibiting handheld cellphone use in school zones to the city limits. Legal counsel will draft an ordinance for city commissioners to consider.

Seven commissioners voted for the motion, and Leon Church was the lone commissioner against it. Charlie Graham was not present.

The school zone ordinance, which took effect in August, bars motorists from using handheld wireless devices within school zones. Emergency personnel are currently exempted from that ordinance, and drivers can use handheld devices if they are legally parked, according to municipal laws.

Church said he supported a texting ban but wasn't in favor of a ban against handheld devices.

"I'm not sure how much more distracting talking on your cellphone is than

changing your CD player," he said. "We're probably

overstepping a bit."

Only three cities in Texas - El Paso, Austin and Galveston - have enforced a total ban on cellphone usage while driving, he said.

Millions of cars pass through Austin, and its police department issued about 350 citations since the city first implemented the ban, Church said. In Amarillo, police have issued nearly 50 citations under the school zone ordinance since it took into effect, said department Traffic Investigations Unit Lt. Mike Miller.

The motorcycle unit typically scans school zones the hardest during the beginning of the school year, but officers haven't focused on such areas lately, he said.

Miller said Police Chief Robert Taylor was opposed to a texting ban because of enforcement difficulties. That ban also would be burdensome for police who would have to subpoena cellphone records, he said.

Banning use of handheld electronic devices is the most effective method for enforcement, he said.

The traffic commission also unanimously voted to begin an educational campaign on texting while driving.

Traffic Commissioner Craig Gualtiere said while he supported public awareness, his biggest concern was that the commission carries no budgetary power.

City officials will have different opinions of how to do raise awareness and how much to spend on the campaign, he said.

The private sector could help underwrite costs for the educational campaign, which should last up to three years, Traffic Commissioner Kenneth Graham said. The traffic commission also will make recommendations for the City Commission on what the program should entail during the next work session.

"I'd like to see the city of Amarillo take the lead on that," Graham said.