House approves bill banning use of mobile phones while driving

Saying that the use mobile phone removes concentration on the road, the House of Representatives has approved on third and final reading a measure prohibiting motorists from using cellular phones while driving. Rep. Susan Yap (2nd District, Tarlac), one of the authors of House Bill 4571, said while cellular phones have become an integral part of both business and personal lives, the alarming figures on cell phone-related accidents transform this technological gadget into a dangerous device. “The danger is not only to the lives and limbs of the general driving public but also to the innocent pedestrians," Yap said. Yap said since the necessity of using mobile phones does not prevail over the need to ensure road safety, the bill promotes hands-free devices so that drivers may not be distracted while driving. “It promotes the responsible use of cellular phones while driving and promotes driver awareness of the dangers of road traffic," Yap stressed. Rep. Aurelio Gonzales, Jr. (3rd District, Pampanga), another author of the bill, said operating cellular phones while driving in some instances and situations pose not only inconvenience to other people but danger as well. “While some cities have enacted local ordinances prohibiting its use by drivers, there is a need to institute a similar measure on a nationwide scale to protect life, limb and property," Gonzales said. Rep. Romeo Acop (2nd District, Antipolo City), another author of the measure, said multi-tasking behind the wheel, a situation where the driver is simultaneously doing another thing or act while driving, is a dangerous predicament not only to the driver and his passengers but to the general public who may be riding in other vehicles or simply walking along the road. “Distracted driving, or using a cell phone or other electronic device while driving, particularly texting and reading messages, effectively removes the visual focus of the driver from the road and diminishes his degree of concentration on the safety of his driving," Acop said. Under the measure to be known as the “Anti-Mobile Communication Devices Use while Driving Act of 2011," the use of mobile communications devices while driving a motor vehicle is regulated and penalties are imposed for violation thereof in order to promote road safety. Motor vehicles include wheeled agricultural machineries, construction equipment and other forms of conveyances, regardless of whether machine, animal or human-powered as long as operated or driven in public thoroughfares under circumstances where public safety is under consideration. The bill requires the Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) and the Land Transportation Office (LTO), in coordination with related functions as well as the private sectors, to undertake a nationwide information, education, and communication campaign for a period of six months from its effectivity. It mandates the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA), the Philippine National Police (PNP) and other government agencies and instrumentalities to render assistance to the implementing agency to carry out its implementation. Exempted from the ban are drivers of motor vehicles who use cellphones with the aid of hands-free devices and those that perform urgent, emergency, and official functions where such limitations will result in greater injury or impair their performance. Violators will be slapped with a P10,000 fine and revocation of their driver’s license. The co-authors of the bill are Reps. Augusto Syjuco, Jr. (2nd District, Iloilo), Diosdado Arroyo (2nd District, Camarines Sur), Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo (2nd District, Pampanga), Irwin Tieng and Michael Velarde (Party-list, Buhay), Ma. Theresa Bonoan-David (4th District, Manila) and Roger Mercado (Lone District, Southern Leyte). — Newsbytes.ph