Can a Mobile Phone App Prevent Distracted Driving?

If it is possible to make any generalizations about Americans below the age of forty, it is that they use mobile phones for virtually all activities practical and recreational and that they worry, for good reason, about money.  As stable jobs with retirement benefits become scarce and gigs proliferate, any phone app that enables users to earn or win money, even if the amounts are small, is bound to find an audience.  A mobile phone app may sound like an unlikely candidate for reducing distracted driving, but a new application aims to do just that.  In the meantime, keep your eyes on the road, not on your phone’s tiny screen, and if you get injured in a car accident, contact a South Carolina car accident lawyer.

How Big of a Problem Is Distracted Driving in South Carolina?

Distracted driving plays a role in one out of every four car accidents in South Carolina, according to data from the South Carolina Department of Insurance.  Meanwhile, other states appear to have an even bigger distracted driving problem than South Carolina.  Drivers were looking at their cell phones in the moments leading up to at least three out of every five collisions nationwide in recent years.

The OnMyWay App and Its Quest to Prevent Distracted Driving Accidents

A local South Carolina startup has developed a mobile phone app that aims to reduce the incidence of texting while driving and thereby prevent collisions.  Chloe Palmer of Charleston, South Carolina, developed the OnMyWay app with her business partner Courtney.  The idea behind the app is simple.  Drivers who download the app will get five cents for every mile they drive without sending or reading text messages.  Although South Carolina was its original home, the app seems to be available to all drivers with U.S. mobile phone numbers.  Given the popularity of driving gigs during the COVID-19 pandemic, now that people are having food and so many other items delivered, the app can help some drivers achieve the gig economy dream of earning money for doing two tasks at once.  For example, a food delivery driver can earn her salary, while simultaneously earning a few dollars each shift for keeping her eyes off of her phone while driving.

Distracted Driving Is About More Than Just Text Messages

A monetary incentive can be a good way to help drivers keep their eyes away from their phones and stay focused on the road, but it cannot singlehandedly solve the problem of distracted driving.  The constant alerts coming from your phone can be a distraction even if you don’t respond.  Watching videos can also be a distraction.  Likewise, connecting your phone to your car’s audio system reduces the number of distractions your phone can cause, but it does not completely eliminate them.

Reach Out to Us Today for Help

A Columbia car accident lawyer can help you if your injuries were the result of a distracted driving accident.  Contact The Stanley Law Group for a consultation.

Resource:

abcnews4.com/news/local/charleston-based-app-working-to-curb-phone-use-while-driving-hits-major-mileston

https://www.thestanleylawgroup.com/how-effective-is-emmas-law-at-preventing-dui-car-accidents/