Skip to Content
Streetsblog Los Angeles home
Streetsblog Los Angeles home
Log In
Safety

High-Stakes Testing: A Lesson in Texting While Driving

Here's a cool, funny, and genuinely effective public service announcement out of Belgium. According to Gizmodo, non-profit Responsible Young Drivers essentially pranked a bunch of people taking their drivers license exam. To pass, they were told, they'd have to show they could adequately send text messages while keeping control of the car.å

The results, all caught on camera, strike an impressive balance. You'll laugh at he skids, swerves and shrieks of the panicked test takers even while realizing that the flying cones could, outside the context of a YouTube clip, be someone's child.

The power of the clip comes in part from how easy it is to identify with the drivers, who quickly understand that performing both tasks well is nearly impossible. “Honestly, I feel like an idiot who can’t drive,” says one, while another realizes: “People will die.”

Stay in touch

Sign up for our free newsletter

More from Streetsblog Los Angeles

Why Cities Need More “Agile” Streets

When projects are routed through a full capital-improvement workflow, solutions tend toward expensive, permanent interventions - not alternatives that might achieve 80 percent of the benefit at 10 percent of the cost

March 25, 2026

Wednesday’s Headlines

ICE, speed cameras, Ohio Avenue, North Metro K Line extension, SB79, streetlight repair, DIY, Olympics, car-nage, L.A. River path gate, and more

March 25, 2026

Monrovia Seeks Input on Draft Bike Master Plan

The deadline for public comment is this Friday, March 27 2026

March 24, 2026

This Week In Livable Streets

Metro board K Line showdown, L.A. mayoral debate, westside bus lanes, L.A. City Council Transportation Committee, SB 79, and more

March 23, 2026
See all posts