OAKLAND, CA (AP) -- Governor Schwarzenegger singed a bill Friday that will make it illegal to hold a cell phone while driving. The new law will require drivers to use headsets or speakers to talk while in the car.
Motorists could be fined up to $50 when the new bill will take effect July 1, 2008.
``The simple fact is, it's dangerous to talk on your cell phone while driving,'' the Governor said during the bill-signing ceremony. ``So getting people's hands off their phones and onto their steering wheels is going to make a big difference in road safety.''
State Senator Joe Simitian, D-Palo Alto, said that the new bill will not eliminate all distractions while driving and talking, but will allow drivers to ``have both hands free to control the vehicle during those split seconds that make the difference between life and death.''
It is estimated that five percent of traffic accidents in the U.S. are caused by drivers talking on a cell phone, according to a study released in 2002 by Harvard University.
The California Highway Patrol said that cell phone use is the main cause of accidents involving distracted drivers.
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