October 25th, 2009 
Patrick Hebert Tomorrow (October 26, 2009) marks the beginning of enforcement of Ontario’s new hands-free while driving law, requiring Ontario drivers to refrain from using handheld devices while driving… but is it just a paper tiger?
No matter how you slice it, distracted driving contributes to fatalities. Food, coffee, cigarettes, passengers, music, and other things that make long and short trips more pleasant all contribute to unsafe motor vehicle operation.
The new law requires all Ontario drivers to use either voice activated dialing features or pull over prior to using a cell phone on the road.
While it is still unclear what sort of fines are going to be put in place against drivers who violate the law, the lack of demerit points is a true downfall of this legislation. While the police still have the authority to lay a careless driving charge against drivers who deserve it in addition to breaking the handsfree law, I believe it is possible that this will simply be a “cost of doing business” for those who flaunt it.
Like photo radar speed enforcement back in the 90s which only caused drivers financial pain and not demerit points, will this new law simply tax those who choose to ignore it?
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