TORONTO – Teens caught texting behind the wheel will face stricter penalties following a new law in New York State.
The new law makes the punishment for distracted driving on par with the penalties for speeding and reckless driving. The changes took effect on Monday.
Young drivers caught texting while driving will automatically have their driver’s license suspended for 60 days. Teens could lose their licence for up to 6 months if they offend again.
New York State already had fines in place to combat distracted driving – up to $150 and five driver violation points for a primary offense – but officials hope the new laws will deter young motorists from texting while driving.
The U.S. government says drivers under 20 years old account for 16 per cent of all distracted driving crashes.
“Those two, three, four, five seconds that you look down to answer the text,” said Governor of New York Andrew Cuomo, who signed the legislation into law. “That period of inattention is all the time in the world.”
Currently in Canada, all ten provinces have some form of distracted driving law in place, but the penalties and fines vary, and no province has a law like New York’s that suspend licenses.
Saskatchewan and Newfoundland and Labrador have some of the steepest fines for distracted driving, at $280 and up to $400 a pop, respectively. The two provinces also lead the pack, issuing four demerit points for a violation.
British Columbia and Ontario, in addition to banning hand-held mobile devices, have also banned the use of hand-held electronic entertainment devices – such as mp3 players – while driving.
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