iLounge

1

Oh Canada! Why not just hire govt. workers to drive us all everyplace we want to go why don’t ya?

Posted by John P on June 16, 2006 at 8:40 AM (PDT)

2

Yeah, and they should ban radios in cars also. And also, my wife and kids bantering can be a distraction…sheeesh!

Posted by ipod-upod on June 16, 2006 at 8:46 AM (PDT)

3

Can’t quite wrap my head around how using my iPod is more distracting than the car stereo. I’d go so far as to say that it’s less distracting since I’m not madly pushing channel presets every 2 minutes trying to find something that doesn’t suck.

Posted by Code Monkey in Midstate New York on June 16, 2006 at 9:03 AM (PDT)

4

yeah banning ipods is tantamount to banning any audio device that requires interaction. singling out ipods is bizarre. anyway this would never pass. they have lobbyists in canada, too i assume. “Driver distraction is the greatest unreported traffic safety issue in Canada.” yeah great quote because it is implicitly impossible to back up. better than banning electronics’ use and making pretty much everyone in canada a criminal, they should support better ways to integrate technology into cars.

Posted by jm on June 16, 2006 at 9:04 AM (PDT)

5

Just checked the CAA web site.  This request only applies to ‘novice’ drivers who are still under their province’s graduated licensing system.  There are already various restrictions on where and when you can drive as part of the graduated system for new drivers.

Posted by Gord on June 16, 2006 at 9:09 AM (PDT)

6

as long as they want to ban all devices, whats the big deal?

want to guess how many people here in the US have been in an accident because they were dicking around with their iPod or cell phone???

Posted by none on June 16, 2006 at 9:22 AM (PDT)

7

i cant help but agree with this, to many times have i been inches away from being side swiped by some retarded woman in a mini van talking on her cell phone, and people driving SUV’s

Posted by Hell-In-A-Handbasket on June 16, 2006 at 9:33 AM (PDT)

8

None - That number is actually up there in percentages, it’s just that nobody can prove that they were on it ” no i wasnt on the phone officer ” cause the officer didnt see it, cant charge / write up, cause after they hit you, they hang up with whoever they were talking to

Posted by Hell-In-A-Handbasket on June 16, 2006 at 9:36 AM (PDT)

9

Glad I don’t live there.

Posted by Rich on June 16, 2006 at 10:21 AM (PDT)

10

While I agree that this is stupid if applied to every driver, it only applies to people with what we in Ontario call the “G1”. The G1 is basically designed for student drivers: you have to have a licensed driver in the car, you must have a blood alcohol level of 0, you can’t drive on any 400-series (i.e. ANY) highway, you can’t drive after dark. The idea is that you’re supposed to be learning how to drive. I like this ban because it makes sure that student drivers are using their G1s for learning to drive, not joyriding with their their b*****s and hoes, their cold-cathodes, and Jay-Z cranked up on the iPod-izzle.

Posted by Special_K on June 16, 2006 at 10:37 AM (PDT)

11

Ban pants! Those things always bother me while driving.

Posted by nosedive51 on June 16, 2006 at 10:49 AM (PDT)

12

Ban pants ? There’s already too many people driving around without pants while playing with themselves… now that’s a distraction!

If I can’t listen to my ipod while driving, I’ll just go back to playing my harmonica…

Posted by airmojo on June 16, 2006 at 10:53 AM (PDT)

13

Screw the harmonica. I bet you I can play the bagpipes, juggle, and STILL drive better than you.

Posted by duest on June 16, 2006 at 11:16 AM (PDT)

14

It’s funny that people are acting shocked. If you think you haven’t had a close call while spinning through your playlist you probably just didn’t see the guy giving the finger. It is the same as doing 85 mph and trying to find a contact in your cell’s address book.

Tuning a radio is nothing like having trying to navigate through an iPod (“Oh, it’s shuffling the album, I gotta go back and turn off shuffle mode.  Where’s that? Under music?... What group of elderly nuns in the road?”

Posted by superape on June 16, 2006 at 11:39 AM (PDT)

15

Eating while driving.
Applying make-up while driving.

These distractions don’t make it up there on the “banned” list. Why should cellphones and music devices? Screw this!

Posted by iSense on June 16, 2006 at 11:51 AM (PDT)

16

A new law for ALL drivers: “you must have common sense to drive any motorized vehicle”

god i hate stupid people

Posted by ERIC on June 16, 2006 at 1:04 PM (PDT)

17

I recently saw a woman smoking and talking on her cell phone whlie driving, leaving her third and fourth hands to do the driving. (Meaning no hands)

Posted by LukeA on June 16, 2006 at 1:18 PM (PDT)

18

Mainly I’m pretty happy to be a Canadian, until some idiot makes a claim like this one.  I’ve been driving with my iPod for 3 years, and before that with portable cd players plugged in through my old tape deck (before I replaced it).  I’ve also been using a cell phone for the last couple of years, and I’ve never even come close to causing or being in an accident, especially not because of those products.  If anything, we should crack down on drivers who are just plain stupid and don’t pay attention to anything.  If you’re going to ban iPids and cell phones, ban make up, and cigarrettes and fast food drive thrus, and the million other things that cause people to not pay attention.  If you want peoplenot to get distracted while they drive, I’m fairly certain you have to stick them in individual pods, with nothing in front of them but a wheel and pedals, and have no way to see anything other than the road ahead of them.  Even bilboards can cause accidents, but we don’t see a potential ban on them.  What is it with Canada and technology?  I’m done.

Posted by Mark C. on June 16, 2006 at 3:19 PM (PDT)

19

Lets say this passes, which it won’t.  All you need is a head unit that controls the ipod, and a cord long enough to keep it in the trunk, or any other conceiled location.

Passing this law would give me an excuse to buy a new toy.

Posted by jwc110869 on June 17, 2006 at 8:52 AM (PDT)

20

What are you talking about “if this thing passes?” It’s not a law… it’s just an urging from the CAA. It’s exactly like the AAA. Just because the AAA urges Congress to do something, it doesn’t mean there will be a bill about it. Same with the CAA.

This is the main part of the actual press release: ““This restriction is not an effort to ‘punish’ novice drivers - rather, this is a measure to help them master their driving skills, while reducing distractions,” said CAA President David Flewelling. “Novice drivers are subject to many restrictions as they learn to drive, such as not driving on four-lane highways and not driving during certain hours. By also restricting the use of electronic devices, such as cell phones, MP3 players and wireless hand-held devices, they can truly focus on the driving task.”

They are not singling out the iPod and I’m sure they are just talking about using it as a handheld. In any case, this is a good idea. Inexperienced drivers have enough to deal with just looking at what is going on around them, without being distracted by stuff they have to take their eyes off the road and fiddle with. You do not have to take your eyes off the road to talk to a passenger or listen to a radio/iPod playlist.. but you do when you are fiddling with some device.

Posted by Goatee on June 18, 2006 at 9:00 AM (PDT)