It’s Not the Terminator but the Textalyzer

In the United States, the month of April was designated as distracted driving awareness month and during this month-long initiative, the media outlets were filled with articles, editorials, essays and reports on distracted driving. As a consensus, the media continues to remind drivers to avoid driving distracted even though the message is falling on deaf ears in many cases. Can New York’s new initiative the Textalyzer be the solution to distracted driving? Let’s see!

Drivers of all ages continue to use their smartphones while operating their vehicles. In Canada and many States in the U.S. using a hand-held device is prohibited by law. In many collisions, however, it ‘s hard to prove that a mobile device was in use during the time of the crash until now.

The state of New York is looking at technology that may, in fact, determine if a motorist was using their phone at the time of a crash. Currently referred to as “The Textalyzer”, the device can be plugged into a smart or cell phone and determine the last use. It can also provide information regarding what was being done on the phone and at what exact time the action was being carried out. The device is being referred to as the text-driving version of a Breathalyzer.

Textalyzer and Privacy Laws

The Senate in New York is also looking into a bill that would allow the use of the Textalyzer without issuing a warrant if a driver refused to allow their phone to be analyzed.

Distracted driving continues to increase on an annual basis according to the National Safety Council. In 2015, cell-phone related collisions increased for the third year in a row and accounted for more that twenty-five percent of all crashes in the U.S. Once the formalities of privacy laws are ironed out, this new technology for law enforcement may help to curb the distracted driving behaviour. Only time will tell! To read more about the device, visit http://www.nytimes.com/2016/04/28/science/driving-texting-safety-textalyzer.html?_r=0