Thirty-nine people have died in crashes caused by distracted driving in North Carolina since the beginning of this year, according to Mark Ezzel, the director of the Govenor’s Highway Safety program. To him, that statistic is a call to arms.

“It’s important that you pay as much attention as possible when you are essentially having a 2,000-pound guided missile that you’re taking down the highway,” he said. “People need to pay attention and hopefully we can encourage more folks to do that.”

Now, North Carolina lawmakers are taking steps to curb distracted driving by considering a “Hands Free” law that would ban distracted behavior by the drivers of a vehicle on public roads.

The Hands Free NC Act, House Bill 144, would make it illegal to hold your cellphone in your hand while driving. In fact, the bill’s language makes it illegal to hold or support a wireless device with any part of your body while operating a vehicle. In order to use your phone for directions or phone calls, it will have to be mounted in your car.

Violators could face a $100 fine under the proposed legislation.

Ezzel points to the success of a similar hands free law passed in Georgia. According to University of South Carolina research, traffic fatalities in the Peach State dropped by 3.4 percent in 2018, which includes the six months after a Hands Free law was passed there in July.

“All of us have seen it, and its time to do as much about it as we can,” he said. “It’s a difficult issue to address, but we’ve got to do it.”

The North Carolina House passed the measure on Tuesday, sending it to the Senate. That chamber will now be able to work on the legislation before any final version could be sent to the governor.

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