A cell phone ticket in NYC is a NYC traffic violation that carries a fine but does not incur points on your license. The cell phone ticket is given to motorists who operate a cell phone without a hands-free device. So if you’re holding the phone up to your ear, you can get a cell phone ticket in NYC.
FINE: $120
POINTS: 2 points
There are typically 500 cell phone tickets in NYC given out daily. NYC police seem to having regular 24 hour crackdowns on cell phone tickets. On January 21, 2010, the crackdown resulted in over 7,400 cell phone tickets be issued.In 2009, a 24-hour crack down on motorists using a cell phone device without a hands-free device caught over 9,000 people who were issued with cell phone traffic tickets.
WHERE TO FIGHT THE NYC TRAFFIC VIOLATION:
New York City has special Bureaus (courts) to handle speeding tickets in NYC and other NYC traffic violations, which is the New York State Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) Traffic Violations Bureau (TVB). The TVB does not handle criminal driving offenses, such as driving while intoxicated and driving with a suspended or revoked (aggravated unlicensed operation). TVBs do not handle parking violations.
Specifically; The TVB handles traffic tickets issued in:
- The five boroughs of New York City
- The cities of Buffalo and Rochester
- Portions of the towns of Babylon, Brookhaven, Huntington, Islip, Riverhead and Smithtown in Suffolk County
More information from the Department of Motor Vehicles about NYC traffic tickets.
TEXTING WHILE DRIVING
FINE: up to $150
POINTS: 0 points
It’s just not safe. And it’s illegal in NYS to text while driving. On November 1st, NY State became the 14th state to ban texting while driving. That includes reading, typing and/or sending text messages, and the fine is up to $150.
There is are two twists to this NYS ban that most of the other states don’t have:
– You can’t be pulled over for this violation, but you can get a ticket for texting while driving if you’re stopped for something else. This means the ban is a secondary enforcement law.
– This law also makes new drivers take an additional 30 hours of supervised driving, and says that a new driver can have only one passenger under 21 in their car, instead of two passengers.
According to the Transport Research Laboratory in Great Britain, you’re much more likely to be in an accident if you are texting while driving. You’re more likely to stray from your lane, more likely to tailgate, and you’ll be 56% less adept at steering than if you were under the influence of marijuana. 888RedLight has a great summary of this study.
In a poll by The New York Times & CBS, Ninety-seven percent found people supported the banning texting while driving, which is significantly high for any kind of poll. Eighty percent also support a ban on talking on a hand-held cellphone while driving. Half of the people surveyed felt the punishment for texting while driving should be just as severe as for drunken driving.
Read more about the NYT Poll and a Virginia Tech Transportation Institute Study.
