Young drivers’ use of cell phones increases after ban implemented

Teenage drivers’ cell phone usage edged higher in North Carolina after the state enacted a cell phone ban for young drivers, research from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) found.Similar legislation banning all drivers from using a hand-held cell phone exists in Newfoundland and Labrador, and several Canadian jurisdictions, including Ontario, have considered such a ban, according to Transport Canada.North Carolina’s ban for drivers younger than age 18 is part of the state’s graduated licensing system, an IIHS release says.In the month or two prior to the Dec. 1, 2006 implementation of the ban, 11% of teen drivers were observed using cell phones as they left school in the afternoon by IIHS researchers.Almost five months after the ban took effect, nearly 12% of teen drivers were observed using phones most of which were hand-helds, the IIHS reports.Nine per cent were holding phones to their ears, while fewer than 1% were using hands-free devices. Roughly 2% were observed dialling or texting. Cell phone use remained steady at about 13% at comparison sites in South Carolina, where teen driver cell phone use isn’t restricted, the IIHS release notes.Most parents and teen drivers agreed police officers weren’t looking for cell phone violators, the association says. “Seventy-one per cent of teens and 60% of parents reported that enforcement was rare or non-existent,” the IIHS release says. “Only 22% of teenagers and 13% of parents surveyed believed the law was being enforced fairly often or a lot.”