Hands free driving ordinance proposed to Pocatello city council

Law enforcement is taking a step towards making the road safer.

Deputy Chief Roger Schei met with city council proposing a new city ordinance in regards to “hands-free” driving Thursday.

This would prohibit the use of mobile electronic devices while driving, establish penalties and allowing law enforcement officers to stop vehicles for the violation.

This comes nearly a month after this was enacted in Idaho Falls.

Pocatello officials worked with Idaho Falls to propose this plan for the city council.

It is currently in the process of being put into action; however, there is one more meeting to finalize the penalties of the violation.

Deputy Chief Schei says cellphones have become a major issue for driver’s safety.

“The stats up on the board roughly indicated that 30% of unattended driving citations that we had were cellphone-related,” he said.

The city attorney will prepare the ordinance where it will then go in front of the city council for modifications. From there, the council will choose to adopt the new ordinance.