An Approach for Making Our Roads Safer

Did you know that of all the factors contributing to road accidents, the highest is "Driver Distraction"?

Driver distraction ranges from drowsiness to texting, chatting, or making calls while driving. As much as driving looks simple, it would interest you to know that safe driving requires the driver to be entirely focused, both psychologically and cognitively. Thus, any activity that disrupts the driver's attention, either psychologically or cognitively, puts the driver and all road users at risk. The striking but sad thing about road accidents is that "it sometimes takes only one careless road user to cause the deaths of tens of people."‍

• In 2013, the number of deaths due to road traffic injuries was approximately 1.25 million (according to the World Health Organisation - WHO).
• By 2016, this number had risen to 1.35 million.
• This means that a fatal crash occurs approximately every twenty-four seconds.
• The same WHO report shows road accidents to now be the leading killer of children and young people between the ages of 5 and 29.
• Most motor vehicular accidents are caused by driver distraction and drowsiness.
• The American National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's (NHTSA) 2017 report stated that 795 lives were lost due to driver drowsiness.
• 3,450 lives were claimed in 2016 due to distracted driving.
• Between 2011 and 2015, there were 4,121 fatal crashes involving drowsy driving, with an estimated 90,000 motor vehicle crashes in 2015.

What then can we do? 

‍We oftentimes might not be able to control circumstances, but we can control our reactions to them. ~Anonymous.

‍Given these figures, one can only wish that every person would focus on the wheel. However, we can agree that certain circumstances are sometimes beyond our control. For example, driving on a very lonely road can make you feel tired, and you may find that you are already dozing. Let's face it, there are times you are just exhausted after the day's work, and you are driving home, and you suddenly find yourself dozing at the wheel. Or maybe you had too much to eat in the afternoon, and your circadian rhythm seems to be taking effect on you — and so many other unexpected circumstances may surround you when driving.

Doesn’t this then pose a problem? Aren’t you suggesting I have at least one more person beside me? What if the other person even sleeps off before the driver? What if the passenger’s fatigue affects even the driver?

Approach

We are aware of the limitations of humans, and that is why we propose a solution. As artificial intelligence developers, we can build a model that can recognize when you are feeling sleepy or falling asleep; this artificially intelligent system would then wake you up with a customized sound (whether a beep sound or even a customized voice alert). This system would be more efficient because it is not subject to fatigue and would be accurate in its judgments. In cars where there is a "self-driving option", once the system detects that you are drowsy, it can trigger a command to activate the self-driving mode.

Who should adopt this?

Individuals

‍Do you want a system that warns you when you are drowsy? Do you want a system that helps prove your innocence if you are wrongly accused of sleeping while driving? Then, by all means, consider adopting our drowsiness monitor.

‍Insurance Companies

‍Do you want to monitor customers' performance effectively? Would you like to contribute to road safety and also save costs on avoidable accidents? Did you know that you could increase safe driving by compensating drivers who do not drive drowsy or who heed the drowsiness monitor's warnings? Do you wish to make sounder judgments when paying out claims for accidents, especially those related to drowsiness? Then, by all means, do consider having your customers install this system in their cars.

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