SLC Restricts Cell Phones While Driving

None by KCPW

(KCPW News) Salt Lake City Mayor Rocky Anderson signed an executive order today prohibiting city employees from talking on their cell phones while driving. The move comes too late for 17-year old Lauren Mulkey who died last month.

"My beautiful daughter Lauren Elizabeth Mulkey was tragically taken from me in a car accidenty, hit by a driver distracted by a cell phone," said Linda Mulkey. "Lauren is not the first cell phone fatality, but hopefully with the help of our Mayor, our elected officials and the great citizens of Utah, we can help take steps to make her the last."

Mulkey joined Mayor Anderson in signing the executive order, which applies to city employees driving on official business, in a city car or talking on a city-issued cell phone. Anderson admits the ban will be tough to enforce, so he is relying on people to obey the rules willingly:

"It's about visualizing what can happen when you take your eyes off the road for a few seconds," says Anderson. "We've all seen this on the road - everytime you see somebody in the middle of the day you think they're a drunk driver. Then you catch up and see they're on the phone, and now more and more frequently you see them actually text messaging."

Drivers talking on cell phones exhibit impairments similar to drunk drivers, according to a recent study by University of Utah psychologists. State law prohibits cities from enacting community-wide cell phone bans on drivers. Instead, Mayor Anderson will ask local businesses to make cell-phone restrictions for their employees.

Email to a friendPosted in KCPW Newsroom. Copyright 2008 KCPW