Revolutionary Mobile Phone App Making Driving Safer For Teens

How Using Your Phone Could Actually Make You a Safer Driver | S-Drive from Samsung

We love to share cool things, especially when they are tools or resources that can help protect young people and save lives. Which is why we really wanted to spread the word about a new safe-driving programme from Samsung, S-Drive.

Using a hand-held mobile phone while driving is illegal in all states of Australia, yet evidence still shows that in Queensland at least 25% of drivers are still doing so. With approximately a quarter of car crashes being a direct result of this sort of distraction, something needs to change. (Source)

This is why Samsung has come up with an innovative new app that actually uses the smartphone, to take what was one of the biggest distractions for drivers and turn it into a life-saving tool.

What is S-Drive?

S-Drive is an app that you can install on your Samsung Galaxy smartphone. Using the app, you can be more aware of your driving safety and can be rewarded for safe driving through earning points and redeeming rewards. S-Drive comes with a customised phone cradle. When you place your phone in the cradle, it automatically launches the S-Drive app, which instantly puts the phone into Safe Driving Mode. This means:

• The phone will only allow voice-activated calls and texts.
• If drivers attempt to touch the phone, an audio command will tell them to ‘Stop touching!’
• Drivers receive an audio alert to ‘Stop speeding!’ if they go above the speed limit.
• The app also uses GPS technology to let the driver know about traffic and weather conditions, lane information and accident blackspots.

Incentives with S-Drive

Rather than using penalties for unsafe driving, S-Drive uses incentives for safe driving. Here is how the incentives scheme works:

• Drivers earn points for every kilometre they travel safely.
• They can use their points to redeem rewards, from free access to films and music to free food, drinks and petrol.
• Drivers can also join drive teams with Facebook friends to combine points to win bigger prizes, such as tickets to sporting events or even holidays.

Another way that the incentives work is that the members of the drive teams can motivate one another, as well as keep check on one another’s driving safety. Samsung believe that in this way, peer pressure, which is usually a cause of bad driving among young people, can be turned into a positive influence.

Can it work?

The S-Drive app is already working where it has been piloted in the Hunter region, New South Wales. So far, there are 4,500 active users and over 25,000 rewards have been redeemed. Over 3,000,000 safe kilometres have been travelled by users, with crashes in the region down by 25% and fatalities down by 20%. This has resulted in the region’s death toll from car accidents dropping to the lowest it has been since 1936!

How can I get S-Drive?

You can find out all about S-Drive at samsung.com.au or watch the video below.

After its successful initial trial in the Hunter region, Samsung is hoping to make S-Drive nationally available. If you are interested, you can leave your details here and they will notify you as soon as it is available.

For other ways of keeping safe in cars, check out Rules for Car Seats in Queensland for Kids, Rules for Car Seats in Queensland for Babies and Can You Leave Your Kids in the Car While You Get Petrol?