BIDDEFORD, Maine - A sting operation by a Maine police department found that lots of drivers haven't changed their habits in the wake of the state's new hands-free cell phone law for drivers. The law that went into effect in September bans drivers from holding phones while driving. The Portland Press Herald reports police agencies have been handing out tickets faster than analysts anticipated since then.
Biddeford's police department set up a sting to get an idea of how the laws have changed driving habits. Officers in the city have written 83 tickets and observed twice that number of additional violations during a period of about two weeks since the push started.
Maine police wrote 232 tickets in the first month of the law. Analysts predicted that number would be 137.