How can we stop teens and other drivers from texting while driving?

A cell phone jammer that prevent the phone from working in the car while it's on.

Take away their license with the first offense, and make them retake the driving test to get it back.

There are some cruel and unusual punishments that I would like to use, but the Bill of Rights prevents me. It's no different from talking on the phone, which has been shown to be just as damaging as driving drunk. But it doesn't seem to really hit home until someone you know gets killed by it.

Let them die in the crashes they cause, while focusing all your attention on the innocent victims. lol

An on-board jammer that blocks any mobile activity while the vehicle is in motion.

First offense... 90 days in jail. Second offense, 1 year + in jail, coupled with a lifetime ban from driving.

If they can't learn from this mistake, they are too dangerous to be on the road, EVER.

Why would teens worry about it when adults don't care?

Alter the law and the penalties so it is seen more similar to the way they see the use of a vehicle to transport large amounts of illegal drugs. If they catch you with a hundred kilograms of pot in the trunk they can seize your vehicle as a tool to commit a crime with. So, if they seize both the cell phone and the vehicle, suspend the driver's permit, add criminal charges such as 'reckless endangerment' and/or 'criminal negligence', and send send them to prison, this would be much more likely to be an adequate deterrent than just 3 demerit points and a $140.00 fine (current Quebec law).

While the article's solution is creative, it underestimate's the ability of teen texters, because I know teens who have stick shift cars and text and drive.

Should their be harsher penalties? A driving while distracted ticket is already pretty harsh, and the current punishment. There's a stiff fine, and you can lose your license on a first offense if I'm not mistaken, though it does vary from state to state. And it's an initial, not secondary offense. Meaning that like current seat belt law, you can be pulled over for it, not just ticketed once pulled over for something else.

But kids who are good at texting...it's not as noticeable as the guy who shaves while he drives, or the woman who does her mascara. They're used to texting without looking at their phones, doing it under desks at school, etc.

What you'd have to do is start pulling over anyone and everyone, especially younger people for minor driving mistakes. Small swerves, changing lanes and cutting off someone (intentionally? not?), etc, because those are the best indicators of them being distracted by something like texting until they make a mistake that kills them. It doesn't even have to be a bigger mistake, just at the wrong time, in the wrong place, when other people can't compensate for them.

That's MASSIVE though, requires major manpower, and you're going to get a lot of other people too. People who maybe were distracted or not the best drivers, but also people who maybe had to swerve to avoid something, etc, and if tickets are going to suddenly be issued like candy on Halloween, there are going to be repercussions that we can only guess, and they won't necessarily be safe. When people know that cops are behind a bush, they slow down, are extra careful etc, do everything by the letter of the law, and it not only backs up traffic and causes unnecessary traffic problems, but it's not always as safe. If everyone is going 80 miles an hour on the freeway, the speed limit is 60---is it safe to go 60? Is it safe to drive 20 miles an hour slower than the slowest cars, have everyone move around you? No...you're creating a hazard, and while it may not be legal to go 80, if you can control your can properly, it's safer. And if you can't, get off the damn road.

The other thing is, is even if there was this great law, this great method to find teen texters and pull them over and punish them, they'd still do it. Teen don't make great decisions, and it's not entirely their fault. Their brains aren't fully formed, and so the feeling that they are invincible, that they won't get caught, well, you can do a lot to try and convince them, to prove it to them, but the logic and decision making part of their brains, not fully their, so they will do stupid things. It's the nature of teens and teen brains.

I find a .357 Magnum does wonders.