Cogosense Blog

Aegis Mobility is conducting our 4th Annual Distracted Driving Survey this April for Distracted Driving Awareness month. To participate for a chance to win an iPad Mini visit the below link:

Take Survey Now!

Aegis and Frost & Sullivan have just released a Distracted Driving Positioning Paper.

This paper provides customers with an overview of key issues related to distracted driving including:

• an industry problem overview
• market drivers and characteristics 
• managing risk and liability for corporations 
• solution considerations 
• questions to ask when evaluating solutions

The positioning paper can be downloaded here.

Very good article today in Forbes by David DiSalvo featuring an interview with Dr. David Simons (author of the bestselling book "The Invisible Gorilla").

On the topic of distracted driving, Dr. Simons said:

• The more attention we devote to gadgets, the less we have available to spot unexpected dangers. In part, the danger comes from our lack of awareness of our own limits. When we’re distracted, we don’t notice that we’re distracted.
• What we can do is take steps to limit the consequences of those distractions when they matter most. Perhaps those problems can be addressed through technology (e.g., finding a way to prevent texting by a driver while still permitting it by passengers). But, doing so requires better recognition of the risk in the first place.

The full article can be found here.

A recent press release from the University of Washington finds that 8% of drivers on Washington state roadways were using electronic devices while driving and that half of those were texting.

The full study is expected to be published in October but joins a growing list of state initiatives to understand the problem of distracted driving and to take action to prevent distracted driving. The State of Iowa issued a comprehensive RFP in September 2013 to evaluate technology solutions aimed at young drivers within the state.

A great blog post by a master marketeer, Seth Godin, today. He comments on the unlikelihood of emotional appeals, such as the recent Werner Herzog short film, to change deeply entrenched values and behaviours in our culture:

• The culture of the car as a haven, a roving office, and a place
  where you do what you like
• The culture of the Marlboro man, no speed limiters in cars,
  'optional' speed limits on roads
• The culture of connection and our fear of being left out
• The culture of technology, and our bias to permit it first
  and ask questions later

He notes that part of the solution could be notifying others of a driver's status as they could be held liable for knowingly causing dangerous distractions. However, he summarizes the most "inexpensive, fast and effective" solution perfectly:

... when a phone is moving, don't permit it to accomplish certain tasks.

People won't die as a result.

It won't cost the companies a penny in profit.

And defenders of the status quo will scream about freedom and access and rights and how it used to be. They will worry about people on trains or passengers in carpools.

But you know what? It's better than being dead. Better than being the victim of the one out of three drivers I see who couldn't wait ...