RICHMOND, Va. (WRIC) — Richmond Mayor Levar Stoney has instructed his team to begin working on an ordinance that would punish city drivers who are distracted by their cell phones.

Stoney announced this initiative after the law banning the use of hand-held devices was rejected by the General Assembly on Wednesday.

The hands-free driving bill went down after legislators could not agree on the language of the bill. The debate was whether or not the language covered the growing technology around texting and driving.

The law banning the use of a hand-held 📱while driving died in the House today. I’ve directed my team to begin the work of introducing an ordinance that will add an extra penalty for drivers who are distracted by the use of their cell📱while driving in Richmond. #VisionZero pic.twitter.com/x9vnmgUd5O— Levar M. Stoney (@LevarStoney) April 4, 2019

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