Mar 14, 2008 3:00 pm US/Pacific
Technology Lets Parents Logon, Watch Teen Drivers
NEW YORK (CBS) ―
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New technology, such as the Drive-Cam, allows parents to monitor teen drivers visually.
CBS
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The CellCoach emits a high-pitched scream if it senses someone driving and talking on a cell phone.
CBS
The statistics are staggering. Car crashes account for 36 percent of teen deaths in the United States each year. One growing part of the problem is the use of cell phones behind the wheel.
But as CBS station WCBS-TV in New York reports, there's a new technology out there that could offer parents a little more peace of mind.
A recent study found 90 percent of students reported seeing their friends drive while talking on the phone.
"You're so focused on the cell phone conversation that your response time to a red light, to a car cutting in front of you really makes you equal to a drunk driver," said John Ulczycki, Executive Director of Transportation Safety at the National Safety Council
But now, new technology may help curtail this risky behavior.
"We track our teen's driving on the Web site probably about once a week," said Dean Ramsden.
The Ramsdens monitor what their daughter Marlena is doing behind the wheel by using something called the Drive-Cam. It's a small camera placed on the rearview mirror that captures erratic behavior or talking on the phone and transfers it to a Web site where they can log in and view it.
"Mainly she was too aggressive driving into driveways, um seat belt violations," Ramsden said.
If you are looking for other new products designed to accomplish the same goal, check out Cell-Coach, which gets mounted under the dash. The device sends off an annoying screech if it detects cell activity inside a car. The alarm stops once the phone is turned off.
"It's not blocking a call, it's just making a very loud noise," Ulczycki said.
Then there's software you can install on your teen's phone. It detects car motion, so when someone calls while your teen is behind the wheel, they get a special voicemail.
Example: "Hello, Tom appears to be driving. Press one to leave a voicemail."
The hope is all of these technologies will help save lives.
"I think the technology has definitely improved her skills," Ramsden said.
One interesting note: Fewer teens are getting their licenses. According to the Federal Highway Administration, only 30 percent of 16-year-olds got their licenses in 2006. That's down from nearly 40 percent just six years earlier.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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