Drinking Coffee While Driving Could Be Illegal In NJ

NJ lawmakers want to stop distracted driving by banning anything that may take your hands off a steering wheel.

Bill A-1908 would prohibit a driver from engaging in any activity (eating, drinking or using electronic devices) not related to the operation of the vehicle.

Fines for the first offense would range from $200 to $400; second offenses would be $400 to $600; third (and subsequent) offenses would result in a fine of $600 to $800, and a possible license suspension up to 90 days and a motor vehicle points penalty.

Assemblyman John Wisniewski, a Democrat in Middlesex, and Nicholas Chiaravalloti, a Democrat in Hudson, are sponsoring the bill, which is based on a similar law in Maine that punishes drivers for using an electronic device, applying cosmetics or performing personal grooming while driving.

Wisniewski said

At the end of the day, this legislation is about one thing: safety. At highway speeds, a car accident can happen in the space of a few seconds. Making someone think twice before reaching for their cellphone or watching a video while driving could be all that separates a safe trip from one that ends in an accident. And that's an inconvenience that, frankly, we should all be able to live with."

However, Steve Carrellas, policy and government affairs director for the National Motorists Association state chapter in New Jersey, called the bill an "overreach," and also questioned how it can be enforced.

The provision penalizes a non-specific action instead of the unsafe result from that supposed action. Would that now make changing the radio station or adjusting the radio volume illegal? What about talking to a passenger? Or interacting with the navigation system? Plus, there is nothing in the language that directly says there was actual unsafe operation. All this makes this provision unenforceable."