Austin broadens texting and driving ban

AUSTIN (KXAN) - Austin drivers will soon have to return to the era of Saved by the Bell, whose charismatic young lead - Zack Morris - carted around a giant cell phone he used only for calls.

They might want to take a lesson from Morris, because come Jan. 1, they won't be able to text, surf the Internet, use their handheld GPS or browse photos on their phones while driving. On Thursday, the City Council broadened its ban on texting while driving.

For the culturally uninitiated, Morris, whose show started in 1989, was the very first TV character to carry a cell phone. And he was perfectly content with using it only for talking. The slang term, Z ack Morris phone, now refers to the old-style brick Motorola phones Morris carried.

To refresh your memory, here's a video of Mark-Paul Goselaar, as Zack Morris, on the Jimmy Fallon Show last June.

"It's pretty simple,” said Austin Council Member Laura Morrison. “You can use your cell phone for making a phone call when driving, and that's it."

The new law comes after nearly a year-and-a-half of debate at Austin City Hall on the issue that included, at one time, consideration to ban cell phones in cars altogether.

Austin’s is the first citywide ban in the state. Eighteen states and the District of Columbia outlawed texting while driving, and a new Texas law already aims to stop drivers from using a cell phone in school zones.

The plan makes some exceptions, allowing you to:

* Text when stopped at a traffic light.
* Use the phone's navigation system if it's mounted in plain sight.
* Text in an emergency.

Police have a plan to enforce the ordinance, by looking for distracted driving, and incessant typing on phone keypads in cars, Austin Police Commander Stephen Baker said.

The new ban clarifies a vote taken in November on the issue and goes into effect Jan. 1.