Nutter to sign cell phone ban this afternoon

Regardless of your wireless plan, cell-phone calls in Philadelphia could become very expensive - if you get caught talking on one in your car.

At 4 p.m. today Mayor Nutter is slated to sign a bill that would ban the use of hand-held cellphones while driving, as well as bicylcling or skating.

First-time offenders would get hit up with a $150 fine, with a $300 fine for second offenses.

The law will go into effect immediately, but the city will delay enforcement while it launches an information campaign of unspecified duration, a spokeswoman said.

Citing a Harvard University study, the National Safety Council estimates that drivers using cell phones are about four times more likely to get into a wreck. Five states, including New Jersey, have outright bans.

Not everyone thinks the Philadelphia plan is such a hot idea, however, including some members of the Pennsylvania legislature.

Earlier this week, the state House approved a measure that would pull up to $90 million in state funding from the city if it okayed the ban. It sent the bill to the Senate.

The sponsor, Rep. Richard A. Geist (R., Blair) contends Philadelphia is bypassing the state's Motor Vehicle Code by passing its own citywide ban. He said the state law should be uniform.

Philip J. Berg, a Montgomery County lawyer, agrees. He says Council and the mayor need to get over their hang-up on the phone issue.

"It's nonsense," Berg said, adding the required signage at the city's borders would be a gross waste of money. "There are better things to do than this."

Some drivers, he added, are road menaces even if they're just thinking out loud.

"There are some people who shouldn't be driving," he said.

Councilman Bill Green, a supporter of the measure, said he was aware that the dangers posed by cell phones were not limited to handheld devices, but he added that the city should start somewhere and monitor the incidence of accidents with hands-free devices.

Said Green: "The point is, we are preventing some level of distraction."