This webinar was part of the Marconi Society technology leadership series. Our expert panel included moderator Abhi Butchibabu, VP of Product for Cambridge Mobile Telematics and panelists Hari Balakrishnan, 2023 Marconi Fellow, Co-founder and CTO of Cambridge Mobile Telematics; Steve Kiefer, Founder of The Kiefer Foundation, former General Motors executive; Dr. Kit Delgado, MD, MS, Associate Professor of Emergency Medicine, University of Pennsylvania; Amanda Mezerewski, VP Product – Auto, Personal Insurance, Travelers; Precious Nduli, Director of Marketing, Discovery Insure; and Dr. Todd Shurn, Associate Professor of Computer Science, Howard University
A replay of this webinar is available here.
Vehicles are safer than ever. Yet in 2021, over 42,000 people were killed on American roads, the highest number in 16 years. Pedestrian fatalities surged to 40-year highs. Cyclist deaths reached levels not seen since 1990.
What’s behind this deadly trend and how can we stop it? Abhi teed up the issue by observing that while drunk driving is illegal, distracted driving is not and has surged in recent years. The solution to making roads safer lies at the intersection of technology, policy and economics. She then turned to each of the panelists for their perspective.
Hari further illustrated the current state of road safety by noting that over the one-hour duration of the panel session, 150 people will die and about six thousand will be injured on roads worldwide. This is indicative of a worsening trend tied to the increasing use of smartphones, which Hari termed “weapons of mass distraction.” And while cars have become safer, they are also filled with more distracting and confusing features.
Public infrastructure has not kept pace with these changes. Bright spots exist, however, in the areas of incentivization and public policy, supported by telematics technology and large-scale analyses of driving data
Amanda offered an insurer’s perspective, emphasizing how Travelers and other insurers continuously measure data to manage risk. The increase in the post-pandemic fatality rate for crashes in the US is a key concern, reaching a sixteen-year high in 2021. While it’s not possible to pinpoint a single root cause, the deadly combination of greater levels of distraction with increasing driving speeds certainly contributes to this trend. This is occurring despite more built-in safety features in vehicles than ever.
Precious provided a view beyond the US, speaking from her experience with Discovery Insure in South Africa. At 22 deaths per 100,000, the fatality rate there is one of the worst in the world. She pointed to driver behavior as a major factor, accounting for 60% of crashes. To counter this, they have introduced an incentive program in 40 markets, effectively gamifying good behavior with a point system. Recognizing the importance of loss aversion in behavioral economics, drivers start each day with points they can retain or lose depending on their driving behavior. As they bank their daily points over time, they can raise their status and earn rewards. This has proven more effective than offering insurance premium discounts to good drivers.
As a trauma center physician, Kit sees a lot of crash victims in his work. He continued the theme of driver behavior, observing that the impulse to pick up a pinging phone is one people find hard to resist. He went on to describe research supported by the Federal Highway Administration and performed in partnership with an insurer that confirms the power of loss aversion in encouraging drivers to limit their phone use. They further discovered that adding a competitive element to the program helped ingrain the desired change in behavior to persist beyond the end of the program.
Shifting the focus to policy, Steve described the work of the Kiefer Foundation, founded after his son was killed by a distracted driver seven years ago. While US highway safety statistics indicate 30 people per day are killed by distracted drivers, most experts say the actual number is closer to 50. Hands-free laws that make it illegal to hold a phone while driving exist in 29 states and have led to reductions of 10-20% in crashes and fatalities. Their goal is to see hands-free laws established in all 50 states. Drawing an analogy to drunk-driving laws, he looks forward to distracted driving being seen as socially unacceptable as driving intoxicated is today.
Todd brought his experience as an educator into the conversation, describing his work with computer science students. He has witnessed students’ drive to develop relevant, socially impactful apps. Once they become aware of a problem, students are highly engaged when their work is part of the solution. As an example, his students created an app to address distracted driving, providing feedback on elements of safe driving to young drivers in the DC area. They are now looking forward to making the app widely available.
The panel continued to discuss measures to improve driver behavior, supported by telematics technology. In addition to considering the efficacy of various approaches, they also addressed the opportunities for growth, including public awareness.
For the rest of this conversation and the panel’s responses to questions from the audience, follow this link to the webinar recording.
