The Thousand Oaks Police Department is on a ticketwriting campaign against motorists who have cellphones pinned against their ears. For two years it’s been against the law in California to use a handheld cellphone while driving, so ignorance of the law is no excuse.

We hope law enforcement officers write lots of tickets because the crackdown is long overdue.

Too many local residents are talking on cellphones instead of paying attention to the road.

And make no mistake about it, people who engage in telephone conversations while driving are impaired motorists, even if they’re using a hands-free device.

We disagree with the law because it should have outlawed all phone conversations for drivers of motor vehicles. But at the very least, people need to have two hands on the steering wheel, so when they get ticketed, they deserve it.

For some reason, the dynamics of having a conversation with somebody somewhere else are totally different than talking with a passenger. You could drive from California to Maine and talk the entire trip with somebody sitting next to you, and still be a safe driver.

But if you try talking on cellphone while driving, you’re not concentrating, even if it’s a short trip to your grocery store.

The insurance industry is aware of the problem. Cellphone conversations are causing accidents. An early study showed that drivers using cellphones were as impaired as motorists who had crossed the line and reached illegal blood alcohol levels.

Worst of all, however, are people who write or read text messages while driving.

Who are these people and how did they ever get a license to drive?