Texting Behind the Wheel Will Now be Easier to Detect

Published on April 14, 2016 in Technology/Autonomous Vehicles by Frédérick Boucher-Gaulin

The two leading causes of road crashes are alcohol and driver distraction. Technology can help us see if a driver has been drinking thanks to the breathalyzer, and blood samples are admissible in court.

But what about cell phone use? Responsible for an alarmingly large number of collisions, crashes and even deaths, the act of speaking on your phone without hands-free connectivity has been rendered illegal; if you get caught with your phone in your hands, you can get a fine and rack up demerit points your driver's license. However, nobody seems to care.

Part of problem stems from the fact that this law is pretty hard to enforce. Yes, we can see if a text message was sent, but it's hard to track every interaction one can have with his or her phone, such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and surfing the Internet.

An Israeli company is currently working on a system that can scan a phone and see how it has been used. This could eventually be installed in patrol cars to help solve cases much faster.

Furthermore, laws is changing: the state of New York is working on a law that could force people involved in a crash to surrender their phone. They currently aren't obliged to do so.

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