Saskatchewan residents support ban on cell phone usage will driving

Saskatchewan residents support ban on talking / texting on cell phones while driving. Law to impact younger drivers the most.
 
September 16th, 2009 (Saskatoon, SK). A new independent online poll conducted by Insightrix
Research shows that public approval is strong for provincial legislation recently proposed by
Premier Brad Wall in relation to talking or texting on cell phones while driving.
 
Specifically, six in ten (59.3%) Saskatchewan residents strongly support the proposed
legislation while nearly three in ten (28.6%) somewhat support it – for a total of 87.9%. Only
3.6% strongly oppose the legislation. Respondents were informed that the proposed
legislation excludes the use of hands-free accessories (such as Bluetooth®) while driving.
 
Younger residents between 18 and 34 years of age are least likely to strongly support the
proposed legislation and support increases with age. Specifically 42.6% of 18-34 year olds
strongly support the proposed ban, versus 58.3% among those aged 35-54 years and 73.6%
among those aged 55 years or more. Women (62.7%) are also more likely to strongly support
the proposed legislation than are men (55.3%).
 
While a strong majority supports the proposed legislation overall, it is apparent that many will
need to change their current behaviours when behind the wheel. Specifically, one third
(32.8%) self-report that they talk on their cell phone (not in hands-free mode) at least once
per week while operating a vehicle. In fact, one in ten (10.4%) Saskatchewan residents admit
they do so once per day and 6.6% indicate they do so several times per day. In line with
lower support for the proposed legislation, the greatest offenders are younger individuals
(aged 18-34) and males. Specifically, 45.8% of those aged 18-34 make a phone call on their
cell phone while driving at least once per week, compared to 39.7% among those aged 35-
54 and 15.1% among those aged 55+. Further, 38.0% of men talk on their cell phone at least
once per week while behind the wheel, compared to 28.2% among women.
 
Fewer Saskatchewan residents claim to text message while driving; however, the incidence of
such activities is still moderate (13.4% do so at least once per week). Alarmingly, three in ten
(31.4%) individuals between the ages of 18-34 admit they text message at least once per
week while behind the wheel. Fully 14.7% of people within this age range report they sms
while driving at least once a day.
 
While Saskatchewan residents are behind the legislation as proposed by the Premier, support
falls notably if it were to include hands-free conversations while driving. Specifically, a
minority of Saskatchewan residents (42.3%) support the legislation if it were to include talking
in a hands-free mode while driving (18.7% strongly support, 23.6% somewhat support).

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