Indiana Senate will decide on bill that restricts teens driving with cell phones

INDIANAPOLIS -- Teenage drivers would be required to get a lot more practice behind the wheel -- and would be banned from using cell phones while driving until age 18 -- under a bill that cleared an Indiana Senate committee Tuesday.\nThe legislation would also eventually move the age requirement for a driver's license to 16 1/2.\nSupporters say such restrictions will improve safety by giving beginning drivers more practice. But some lawmakers questioned whether the bill, which passed the Senate Transportation Committee on a 5-4 vote, would work.\n"This is another example of government trying to overstep its boundaries," said Sen. Mike Delph, R-Carmel .\nThe bill would require teens applying for a license to have at least 50 hours of supervised driving practice, with 10 of those hours at night.\n Sen. Vaneta Becker, a Republican from Evansville, said logging that much practice could be a struggle for some teenagers and their parents.\n"How do kids get this?" she asked. "What if they don't have parents that drive?"\nTom Zachary, who owns a driver's training company, said he offers six hours of training for $399. At that rate, getting 50 hours of training would cost more than $3,300.\nOther states already have tougher restrictions on teen drivers, Zachary said.\n"We're not blazing a trail here," he said. "We're trying to catch up."\nBill sponsor and committee chairman Sen. Tom Wyss, R-Fort Wayne, said most teenagers have someone they can turn to for driving practice.\nAdvocates said traffic accidents are the leading cause of death for people ages 15 to 20. Inexperienced drivers can hurt people in other cars as well, Wyss said.\n"I just think it's an important issue," he said. "We're seeing too many kids dying."\nThe bill would move the age requirement for a driver's license in stages from the current 16 and one month to 16 and six months by 2010. Drivers would not be allowed to use mobile phones or other hand-held electronic devices while driving until age 18.\nThe bill's chances in the Republican-controlled Senate are uncertain.\nSenate President Pro Tem David Long, R-Fort Wayne, said a cell phone ban for teenagers may gain traction among lawmakers, but that his caucus hasn't discussed the other aspects of bill, such as the 50 hours of training.\n"Properly preparing your children is a parental responsibility, in my opinion," Long said.