Around here they banned any use of handheld devices whatsoever a few years ago. About a year after the ban took effect, the dirty secret came out that minor accidents attributed to cell phone usage went
UP. Seems that people were now holding their phone under the dash to send and read text messages while driving, so the cops won't see them, and their eyes were further from the road.
Did they repeal the law in the interest of public safety? Yeah, right. Not when it generates 150 bones per ticket.