VALPARAISO | Porter County residents favor a ban on cell phone use in vehicles, except in emergencies, by almost a 2 to 1 margin, and the older you are the more likely you are to support the ban, a survey showed.
The survey was done June 2 for The Times by JEM Research Inc., of Valparaiso. Of the 1,149 responses from 6,500 calls around the county, almost 65 percent favored the ban, with the lowest percentage being 51 percent among those 35 to 44 years old. The support increased to 62.5 percent in the 45 to 54 age bracket, 78 percent among 55 to 64 year olds and 90.5 percent for those 65 and older.
A survey done by Valparaiso University students for the city earlier this year showed about 67 percent favored the ban.
The JEM survey showed the Portage Township support for the ban to be equal to that of Valparaiso, and it topped 70 percent in favor of it in Liberty and Pleasant townships.
The percentages in some of the smaller townships was not as reliable as in the larger townships because of the low number of responses, said Kathy DeWitt, JEM spokesperson, but overall the margin for error for the county was plus or minus 3.8 percent.
Porter County Commissioner Bob Harper said he thinks a ban is a good idea, but it should be a decision by the state.
"If you're driving from Gary to Porter County, you won't know what the law is," Harper said. "That's the kind of thing that should be statewide to make any sense."
He compared it to the ban on smoking in public places, which most states have approved but which the Indiana Legislature so far has rejected, but many communities, including Valparaiso, have enacted.
"That makes sense that a local city would do it because it's enforced by the restaurants, who know what the law is," he said. "But we cannot be passing laws where you can't use cell phones in some communities and not others. It would create a nightmare scenario."
Chicago banned cell phone use in vehicles in 2005 and issues thousands of tickets a year to violators. Harper said Chicago is different because of its sheer size and the plethora of media outlets to spread the word to the public.
"If Hebron would ban cell phones, who would know it?" he said.
Both Indiana and Illinois ban cell phone use for calls or texting in vehicles by certain drivers, including those under 18. Bans against calling and/or texting are in effect in a larger number of states.
Other results of the JEM survey showed that north Porter County residents supported a ban at a slightly higher rate than south county residents, 65.3 to 62.5 percent. Democrats were much more likely to support it, topping Republicans by a 75.2 to 66.9 percent figure. Those professing no party affiliation were the least supportive at 54.2 percent.
The area with the least support for the ban was Morgan Township at 51.5 percent followed by Westchester and Boone townships at 56.7 and 56.8 percent respectively. Again, the Morgan and Boone percentages had a higher margin for error because of the low number of people surveyed.
