Google Glass has not yet seen the light of day but detractors are already lining up to ban it in certain places. First it was a Seattle dive bar, and now it's a West Virginia state legislator who introduced a bill that would ban head-mounted devices while driving.
Republican delegate Gary G. Howell introduced a bill late last week to establish "the offense of operating a motor vehicle using a wearable computer with a head-mounted display." H.B. 3057 updates an existing law regarding texting and talking while driving to also ban "using a wearable computer with head mounted display," according to PCMag.
" 'Wearable computer with a head mounted display' means a computing device which is worn on the head and projects visual information into the field of vision of the wearer," according to the bill text.
If the bill passes, the ban would go into effect on July 1. First offenses would be punished with a $100 fine, second offenses $200, and third and subsequent violations would result in $300 fines. The bill does not give police permission to seize gadgets like Google Glass, according to PCMag.
While not outright targeting Google Glass, Howell's bill was inspired by it. The lawmaker said as much in a note to CNET.
The Google Glass alert window is currently situated at the top-right of a user's field of vision, and Glass has a number of voice-activated features. But the gadget is still in the testing phase and has not rolled out to a large number of users. Those who do have it are developers and a few chosen individuals willing to shell out $1,500 for the gadget.
In an email to PCMag, Howell said the story made him realize that "there was a gap in our no texting and driving bill. Google Glass, and follow on products, would place into the field of view of a driver text that they could read or video. This would be a serious distraction to drivers."
"While going over the texting ban in the previous legislature we had many stories of collisions," Howell continued. "The youth in our society are those that are most likely to try new technology, and they are also our less skilled drivers. That is a bad combination and I hope through the bill to increase awareness that when driving, you should be concentrating on driving."
In a statement, Google said it is "putting a lot of thought into the design of Glass because new technologies always raise new issues. We actually believe there is tremendous potential to improve safety on our roads and reduce accidents. As always, feedback is welcome."
