Florida man develops app to track dangerous teen drivers

Many different hazards exist on the roads. Most of these hazards are behind the wheels of the other cars. Drivers who are inexperienced, distracted or both are frequently causing car accidents across Florida. This disturbing trend is encouraging people to develop some creative solutions.

Because of their inexperience, teen drivers are some of the most unpredictable and reckless people on the roads. Sadly, car accidents are the leading cause of teenage death in the U.S. One Florida man was so concerned about that fact that he developed an app that helps keep these teen drivers responsible and accountable while they drive.

The man came up with concept that requires parents to put a bumper sticker on their teen’s car. The bumper sticker encourages other motorists to report the teen’s driving behavior by texting in short anonymous message to a special number. Similar to the “How’s my driving?” message that often appears on trucks, the program attempts to make teens more cautious.

However, the process of reporting a teen driver requires another driver to text behind the wheel. This form of distracted behavior is widely regarded as especially dangerous. While texting and driving is still legal in Florida, there is no doubt that a distracted driver is a dangerous driver. Reacting to this concern, the creator of this program says that the next batch of stickers will include a warning discouraging people from texting and driving.

This mobile app is a good move towards encouraging young drivers to be accountable behind the wheel, though. Sometimes, teens simply do not have the experience or foresight to know how serious the consequences of dangerous driving can be.

Getting in a car accident can be frightening and people can be seriously hurt. When the cause of these accidents is a negligent, reckless or distracted driver, victims deserve to hold them accountable for the damage that is caused.

Source: The Sun-Sentinel, “New app lets parents ask: ‘How is my kid driving?’” Nicole Brochu, Aug. 9, 2012