The City of Seattle, in partnership with PEMCO Insurance and Cambridge Mobile Telematics (CMT), announces the launch of the “Seattle’s Safest Driver” competition.
The competition is part of Seattle’s Vision Zero efforts to end traffic deaths and serious injuries on city streets by 2030. The Seattle’s Safest Driver competition is open to residents who travel into Seattle from the four-county area (King, Pierce, Snohomish, and Kitsap). Participants will compete for $15,000 in prizes by downloading the app and practicing safe driving. The competition starts today and runs through January 14, 2018.
During the Seattle’s Safest Driver competition, participants can challenge friends, see how they rank in their community, and win prizes for a variety of categories on a biweekly basis. For example, people will be rewarded for being the most improved driver and the least distracted driver. The person crowned “Seattle’s Safest Driver” will win a grand prize of $2,000!
While Seattle is one of the safest cities in the country, more than 10,000 crashes each year result in an average of 20 lives lost and more than 150 serious injuries. Speeding and distracted driving are among the top contributing factors of fatal crashes, and Seattle has seen a nearly 200 percent increase in distracted driving over the past few years.
Data shows that attentive drivers can help save lives. But, distractions abound: according to PEMCO Insurance’s NW Poll, nearly half of Washington state drivers admitted to using their cellphones while driving in 2016.
The City is teaming up with PEMCO Insurance to incentivize and reward better driving behavior, and to encourage participation in the competition.
The contest is modeled after a successful effort in Boston, which saw dramatic reductions in phone use and speeding among 1,100 competitors whose phone distraction dropped by 47 percent and their speeding dropped by almost 35 percent. The app, developed by CMT, provides feedback to drivers on five metrics for each trip they take: rapid acceleration, harsh braking, sharp turns, speeding, and phone distraction. Once a trip is completed, the driver receives an alert with their score for that trip, feedback on the different factors, and helpful tips to improve in the future.
Are you Seattle’s Safest Driver? Download the app, enter the competition, or learn more at: www.seattle.gov/safestdriver. To learn more about Vision Zero, visit www.seattle.gov/visionzero. #VisionZero #SEASafestDriver
