Austin, San Antonio Enact Behind-the-Wheel Phone Bans

Police in Austin and San Antonio won’t start issuing fines until February but both cities’ bans on the use of handheld devices while driving are now in effect.

Talking on a handheld phone while driving is banned in 14 states and the District of Columbia, and all but a handful of states have made texting while driving illegal. Texas is among the states without a statewide ban, though many cities have their own ordinances.

Fines in San Antonio will be $200; in Austin up to $500, starting in February.

Distracted driving caused 459 deaths and 18,500 serious injuries on Texas roadways in 2013, according to the Texas Department of Transportation. Those figures include cellphone use, talking to passengers, eating, grooming or even adjusting the radio.

San Antonio has reported more than 250 crashes linked to cellphone use in each of the past three years.

But crash statistics show that for as much attention as cellphones get by policymakers and the media, they contribute to a small number of crashes. Federal data shows that of 30,800 fatal crashes in 2012, only 1.2 percent was attributed to cellphone use, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

From 2010 to 2012, cellphones accounted for 5 to 7 percent of crashes caused by distraction. But the federal agency still notes that texting is “by far more the most alarming distraction” because of the attention it requires from a driver.