Posted on: Friday, December 6, 2002

Council delays action on cell phones

By Curtis Lum
Advertiser Staff Writer

The Honolulu City Council late Wednesday night took no action on a proposed measure that would ban people from using hand-held cellular telephones while operating vehicles.

Instead, the bill was sent back to the Council's Transportation Committee for further discussion.

Because Wednesday's session was the last regular meeting for the current council, the issue will be taken up by the new council, which will have six new members on Jan. 2.

A motion was made to kill the measure Wednesday night, but Councilwoman Darrlyn Bunda made another motion to refer the measure back to committee. Voting in support of Bunda were John DeSoto, Ann Kobayashi, Romy Cachola and John Henry Felix.

Bunda said she wanted to keep the bill alive because of the hazards associated with cellular phone use while driving. She said the bill is not perfect and can be fine-tuned, but it shouldn't be killed.

"The whole purpose of this bill is to encourage safety on the highways," Bunda said. "It is not intended to ban the use of cellular phones. What it is is promoting hands-free use of cellular phones while driving."

But Holmes, who voted against Bunda's motion, said there isn't enough evidence to show that banning hand-held cellular telephone use would do any good.

"The science is simply not there to indicate that what we're proposing in this bill is going to be effective," Holmes said. "The science would indicate that you would have to ban cell phones completely to be effective."

He and council members Duke Bainum and Jon Yoshimura suggested that the measure die and the incoming council be allowed to develop its own cellular phone measure. Holmes, Bainum, Yoshimura, Felix, DeSoto and Bunda will not be on the new council.