General Motors And Michigan Secretary Of State Celebrate One-Year Anniversary Of 'SenseAble Driving' Safety Partnership
FOR RELEASE: March 28, 2002General Motors And Michigan Secretary Of State Celebrate One-Year Anniversary Of 'SenseAble Driving' Safety Partnership
Detroit, Mich. - According to the Michigan Secretary of State's office, more than 1 million Michigan drivers have been made aware of the dangers of driving distracted, thanks to an innovative safety partnership between General Motors and Secretary of State Candice S. Miller that is one year old Friday.
The safety partnership is one part of General Motors' "SenseAble driving" program, which is a multi-year, $10-million program that combines research, education and technology to combat distracted driving, a growing traffic safety concern. Michigan drivers who visited a Secretary of State branch office during the past year were exposed to brochures, posters, a video and a revised version of the driver licensing test that includes questions on managing everyday driving distractions.
GM has offered the program to other driver licensing offices nationwide.
"'SenseAble driving' is a wonderful example of how industry and government can work together to make motor vehicle travel safer," said Robert C. Lange, GM Executive Director, Structure and Safety Integration. "We are deeply appreciative of Secretary Miller's hard work in making this program a success in Michigan, and for her continued commitment to traffic safety."
"Distracted driving is a significant 21st-century issue and the more we can do to raise awareness about the danger it poses, the safer our roadways will be," Secretary Miller said. "We want to help drivers correctly manage the environment in their vehicle to protect themselves and their passengers, and we are pleased at the commitment General Motors has made toward this effort."
During the past year, 178 Michigan Secretary of State branch offices have been provided with GM-sponsored posters and brochures warning motorists about driver distraction. The posters feature images of motorists performing distracting activities while driving -- such as dialing hand-held cell phones and tending to children in the back seat -- paired with the image of a crashed vehicle. The message is simple: "Is this ... worth this? Don't drive distracted. " The brochures offer tips on ways motorists can counteract distraction in their own vehicles.
In branch offices equipped with video monitors, a GM-sponsored 8 1/2-minute animated video about distracted driving follows the existing 30-minute video about Secretary of State services and safety issues. The state also revised its educational booklet, "What Every Driver Must Know," and its driver license test to reinforce the "SenseAble driving" message.
In addition to this education initiative for all drivers, GM also has focused on the issue of distracted driving with its 362,000 employees. Since Nov. 1, 2001, all GM employees are asked to use hands-free technology, such as the OnStar Personal Calling system or a hands-free headset, when making calls from GM vehicles, or while conducting GM business from personal vehicles. The new employee policy is based in part on research conducted last year revealing that OnStar's embedded cellular phone has had an outstanding safety performance record since it was initiated in 1996.
The OnStar/"SenseAble driving" study was the world's first analysis of a data base that has extensive and actual -- not estimated -- information about whether a crash occurred at the same time a cell phone was in use.
There have been other facets of GM's "SenseAble driving" program as well. Last spring GM launched the Driver Distraction Demonstration (D3), an Internet-based interactive computer exercise aimed at showing the risks associated with taking on too many activities while driving. This high-tech demonstration is aimed at drivers of all ages, with a particular emphasis on young drivers. In addition, in April 2000, GM announced a set of "guiding principles" that govern the design and use of telematics technology in its vehicles. (Find out more about D3 and GM's guiding principles at www.senseabledriving.com)
GM also has several other driver distraction-related research projects under way.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has cited driver distraction as a contributor to motor vehicle crashes for several decades, with at least 25 percent of the 6.3 million crashes reported by police each year involving some form of distraction.
General Motors , the world's largest vehicle manufacturer, designs, builds and markets cars and trucks worldwide. In 2001, GM earned $1.5 billion on sales of $177.3 billion, excluding special items. It employs about 362,000 people globally.
GM's OnStar is the industry leader in vehicle communications and information services. It provides more than 2 million subscribers with a variety of services, including personalized assistance, emergency aid, and hands-free, voice-activated access to Internet-based information, including news, sports, weather, e-mail and stock quotes. The Personal Calling service provides hands-free, voice-activated, cellular phone access. OnStar is available on many GM cars and trucks, as well as select vehicles built by Lexus, Acura and Subaru.
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