Hands-free or be handed a $200 traffic ticket.

State Sen. Dan Rutherford, R-53, has introduced legislation prohibiting motorists from using cell phones to text message or send electronic messages while driving. If ticketed, drivers can be smacked with a $75 fine or $200 fine if the violator commits the act during a traffic accident.

“There is new technology and when it is misused, it creates distracted drivers,” Rutherford said in a publicly released statement. “Problems can be created on our roadways when someone is texting and using one or both hands to send messages. They are not paying attention to the road and their eyes are elsewhere.”

Exceptions to the rule listed in the legislation include usage during emergency situations and if the communications device is permanently pinned to the vehicle.

According to a Nationwide Insurance study, an estimated 20 percent of drivers are sending or receiving text messages while behind the wheel.

If the legislation passes, then Illinois will follow the suit of Washington and New Jersey, who banned the practice last May and November, respectively.

On campus, where the roads are heavily concentrated with students, such a law might produce unpopular reactions.

“I know I’m putting my life at risk when I text while driving, but that’s something that should not be considered illegal,” said Josh Gross, sophomore in ACES. “I really can’t see a police officer pulling me over because I happen to be texting my buddy.”

Meanwhile in Chicago, aldermen passed an ordinance this month to increase fines for driving while talking on a cell phone without a hands-free device.