A Missoula city ordinance against using hand-held mobile phones while driving took effect in February of 2013, and already, members of city council are concerned that it is outdated. City councilman Jordan Hess plans to bring up the topic of “wearable technology” this month.

"We are particularly talking about the Apple Watch, things along those lines, that are really interactive," Hess said. "I suppose I would call them the 'active use' type of wearable technologies. There are a lot of things like the Fitbit, that are not so much in active use while the person is driving. I'm particularly interested to know, how the devices that are used interactively interface with traffic safety

Hess says a particular ordinance is not up for discussion yet, but that he hopes to future-proof the current mobile phone ordinance.

"I just want to have a discussion, and make sure that we are proactive about safety," Hess said. "One of the things I want to do is figure out a way to future-proof our ordinance, I mean we have an ordinance right now, that talks about mobile phones, but how do we craft an ordinance so that we don't have to be reactive every time there's some new type of technology, so that there's some predictability?"

The Missoula Public Safety and Health Committee will discuss these issues on June 24th. Hess says he expects it to be a “slow process.”

 

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