Telus Mobility customers sent and received 5.4 billion text messages in 2010, up from 2.7 billion the year before.

The exploding popularity of texting was undoubtedly fueled by the growing number of feature-rich smartphones on the market, including many with built-in QWERTY keyboards. As of the third quarter of 2010, more than a quarter (28%) of Telus customers were using smartphones, up from 18% in 2009.

“2010 was really the year where consumers started getting into data in a big way,” said Telus spokesman, Shawn Hall. “It used to be the territory of the business user — you know the black suit BlackBerry, but with the iPhone and really nifty Android and more consumer-oriented BlackBerrys hitting their stride, more and more consumers are picking up smartphones.”

Shortly after banning the popular Kik Messenger application from its mobile software store, Research In Motion has filed a patent infringement lawsuit against the developers of the app.

Kik Messenger is a free instant chat program that was available on BlackBerry devices for two weeks, during which time it amassed mroe than a million users. Kik provided many of the same features as RIM’s in-house BlackBerry Messenger software, and was quickly made available on iPhone and Android devices as well.

“RIM became aware of a number of issues and customer concerns regarding the Kik app and service. Following discussions with Kik, the app was removed from BlackBerry App World on November 12,” the BlackBerry manufacturer said in a statement. “Upon further investigation, RIM concluded that Kik had breached contractual obligations. Based on the broad scope and seriousness of the issues and concerns, RIM terminated its agreements with Kik and withdrew RIM’s support for Kik’s service.”

Kik CEO, Ted Livingston, who previously worked for RIM as a systems engineer and technical product co-ordinator, acknowledged that his program was similar to BlackBerry Messenger, but said he hoped it wasn’t banned for competitive reasons. He declined to comment on the patent infringement lawsuit, which was filed on Tuesday in the Federal Court of Canada.

Canadians now view texting behind the wheel as a bigger safety concern than drinking and driving, according to a new survey by the Canadian Automobile Association.

88% of the 6,000 people surveyed ranked texting and driving as a “very serious” threat, compared to 83% who said the same about drinking and driving.

“It signals a sea shift for people,” commented CAA spokesman, Ian Jack. “It’s part of Canadian culture now that, for almost everyone, you don’t get impaired and get behind the wheel of a car. The message hasn’t sunk in yet that it’s a really bad idea to be looking at your wireless device while driving.”

Seven of the ten Canadian provinces have implemented legislation that prohibits texting while driving, but these laws have been ineffective in that the practice is still widespread, particularly among younger drivers.

Other leading safety concerns include talking on the phone while driving, which 65% of respondents ranked as a “very serious” threat, driving while tired (61%), aggressive driving (55%), and excessive speeding (51%).

Canada’s leading wireless operator, Rogers Wireless, has launched two new pay-as-you-go plans for BlackBerry smartphone users.

The plans, priced at $40 and $55, respectively, come with unlimited text and instant messaging, voicemail, call display, call waiting, and a choice of unlimited email or social networking. The $40 plan includes unlimited local calling between 3:00 and 6:00 PM, while the $55 option comes with free evenings and weekends.

Additional prepaid airtime is available for $0.25/minute, with a minimum top-up of $10.

These plans will likely be useful to traveling businesspeople who frequently visit Canada but don’t want to pay for minutes they don’t use or be locked into a two- or three-year contract.

Toronto commuters can check streetcar arrival times on their mobile phones, thanks to a new SMS inquiry service by the Toronto Transit Commission.

Commuters can use the service by texting their stop number to ’898882.’ Almost immediately, they will receive a text message with estimated arrival times for the next six streetcars.

Toronto’s streetcars are equipped with GPS tracking technology, meaning that users receive real-time information on the next car’s arrival time, rather than a pre-set timetable.

“I know how important it is for people who use public transit to know in real time when the next vehicle will arrive,” said Toronto Mayor, David Miller.

The service is available at no charge, aside from the text messaging fees charged by cell phone carriers. It will be extended to cover TTC bus stops later this year.