Tempe may soon have the East Valley's toughest law on cellphone use while driving

Tempe may become the first East Valley city to ban hand-held phone use behind the wheel. 

The Tempe City Council will vote on the ban Thursday, with an emergency clause to immediately roll out the new rules.

On the other side of metro Phoenix, three northwest Valley cities already banned drivers holding phones to talk or text in an effort to curb distracted driving. 

A bill moving through the Arizona Legislature could take such a ban statewide. Other less strict bills also are under consideration. 

Arizona prohibits texting and driving for new teen drivers, but there’s no statewide prohibition on overall hand-held cellphone use.  

The state Legislature has considered, but failed to enact stricter measures for more than a decade.

TaiAnna Yee, a Tempe spokesperson, said city staff didn’t want to wait until the Legislature acts.

“In this gap where the state doesn’t have anything, we just want to make sure we’re covering this gap,” she said.

Push for safer roads

Tempe staff introduced the proposal as part of a national initiative to reduce the number of fatal and serious car crashes.

Nationally, nearly 10 percent of about 35,000 people who died in vehicle crashes in 2015 died at the hands of a distracted driver, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 

Locally, Salt River tribal police Officer Clayton Townsend was hit and killed in January by a driver who was looking at his phone, according to police.

The Tempe council appeared to overwhelmingly support the tougher rules in a study session Feb. 21.

Councilwoman Robin Arredondo-Savage said the ordinance should be even stricter. 

What Tempe is proposing

Tempe's proposal would make manually operating a cellphone a primary offense. That means officers could stop drivers they see holding a mobile device.

Exceptions are carved into the law to allow drivers to use their cellphone while:

• using a hands-free device.
• stopped at a light.
• parked on the side of the road.

Emergency responders and drivers reporting to a medical emergency, safety hazard, or criminal activity also would be exempt.

Fines for the first offense would be $100. A second violation would jump to $250, and subsequent violations within a 24-month period would be $500.

What are the rules on phone use while driving in metro Phoenix?

Tempe first passed a distracted driving ordinance in 2015 that prohibits talking on the phone or texting, but only if police can prove the drivers pose a risk to themselves or others, and it counts as a secondary offense.

Without a state law, a patchwork of local laws regulate phone use behind the wheel.

Here are other local ordinances across metro Phoenix: 

• El Mirage – prohibits handheld-cellphone use while driving.
• Fountain Hills – prohibits texting while driving.
• Glendale – prohibits handheld-cellphone use while driving.
• Phoenix – prohibits texting while driving
• Surprise – prohibits handheld-cellphone use while driving
• Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community – prohibits texting while driving.

Outside of the Valley, Arizona cities that prohibit handheld-cellphone use while driving include: Bisbee, Clifton, Chino Valley, Flagstaff (texting ban only), Kingman, Oro Valley, Prescott, San Luis, Sedona, Tucson, and Yuma.

Coconino, Pima, and Yavapai counties also prohibit handheld cellphone use while driving.

Republic reporter Jen Fifield contributed to this article.

Should Tempe ban handheld cellphone use while driving? Reach the reporter at paulina.pineda@azcentral.com or 602-444-8130. Follow her on Twitter: @paulinapineda22.

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