No Cell Phones while driving

It’s official. No cell phones while driving. It makes sense. You can’t focus on two things at the same time – the road and other cars. Well 4 actually --the 2 ton tank you’re driving, other cars, merging in and out of lanes and of course pedestrians crossing or jaywalking.

There has been a recent surge in pedestrian fatalities in the city and you really have to be aware of what is happening on the road at all times whether you are driving or walking. Driving responsibly is not only about being sober but driving while not texting or chatting on your cell. And that goes for pedestrians too.

I think there should also be a rule about people crossing the street while on their cell phones. They aren't fully aware of what is happening around them because the have the phone propped in one ear which is blocking their peripheral vision. Not to mention they are so engrossed in the conversation that they don't look around. It is tunnel vision but I think of it as tunnel hearing.

I was in the parking lot of a busy shopping mall on Sunday, had put the car in reverse and was about to drive away. Something told me to ease up on the gas. It is a good thing too because this elderly man comes strolling by into the path of my car. The thing is he wasn't even on his cell, he was just preoccupied. Now imagine if he was driving while on his phone, thinking about something that the person on the other end of that phone had said? Well needless to say, the result would have been disastrous.