Zendrive Blog

Improving driving for everyone through better data and analytics using just the sensors in a smartphone.

[zendriveblog]

Moving Drivers Toward Excellent and Collisions Toward Zero: Valet Anywhere + Zendrive

For New Yorkers, car ownership adds one major headache:  Where to park? Valet Anywhere eliminates the “Dude, where’s my car?” frenzy,  transforming the way people own cars in the city. From within the Valet Anywhere app, subscribers request a valet. No cash changes hands as valets safely move clients’ cars from their destinations to secure and trusted Valet Anywhere partner parking garages. And when you want your car back, valets return it in a pinch, with an added carwash and full tank of gas as a bonus. To make their customers even happier, Valet Anywhere recently focused on making their premium service the safest it could be. With more than 200,000 collisions per year, NYC is a city that could definitely benefit from safer drivers. The effort began with Valet Anywhere teaming with Zendrive to improve safety for 17 selected valets over a two-month period. These drivers, which represented a quarter of the company’s fleet, began with lower than average control scores. “Before we started partnering with Zendrive, we had already realized there was a gap in terms of monitoring the driving habits of our valets,” explains Lawrence Lee, Valet Anywhere co-founder and chief operating officer. “We could track valets routes through GPS, but we couldn’t tell how well they were driving--whether they were speeding or using their phones a lot. These were all things that we couldn’t physically see because we weren’t in the car with them. Zendrive closed this operational gap.” Higher Safety and Fewer Collisions Make Premium Service Worth Every Penny Using smartphone sensors, Zendrive and Valet Anywhere measured drivers’ caution, control, and focus on the road—while detecting collisions. The goal of Valet Anywhere’s data-driven safety program was to move at least 60% of the pilot group of drivers from fair to excellent. After two months, Valet Anywhere exceeded this goal, experiencing a 76% increase in excellent drivers. “Our safety program and Zendrive really helped us make our drivers safer by uncovering data we had never seen before and increasing accountability,” says Lee. “What made it easy was there was no upfront hardware to purchase and Zendrive was so easy to install, which made the integration frictionless.” In addition to resulting in two out of three Valet Anywhere drivers operating at levels of excellence, the safety program yielded:

20% reduction in collisions, an estimated cost savings of a couple of thousands of dollars a month – According to a report from Network of Employers for Traffic Safety, on the job crashes cost employers more than $25 billion annually, with speeding costing employers almost $8.5 billion and distracted driving more than $8 billion.

30% reduction in hard braking and speeding – Valet Anywhere used Zendrive technology to decrease the average number of all risky driving events, with hard braking and speeding lowered by nearly a third. This translates into fewer tickets, less wear and tear on vehicles, and fewer collisions (lower speeding and hard braking are indications of near collisions).

Reduced phone usage – Valet Anywhere saw a 4% focus score improvement after 30 days, which means more valets are putting down their phones in favor of safer driving.

Increased Zendrive safety score – Valet Anywhere drivers demonstrated an average Zendrive score improvement of 10 points.

Safer Drivers Result in Greater Customer Trust

Rebecca Weisz, Valet Anywhere’s HR generalist who supports Valet Anywhere’s driver training program reports that in addition to improving driver safety, Zendrive also changed the way new drivers are trained. “We tweaked our training to focus on routes that avoided highways and provided additional defensive driving training. We also discovered most risky events happened when valets were late to customers, so we stressed customer service, coupling better time management and safer driving skills,” says Weisz. Drivers are also promoting safety among themselves now that the company has instituted a “Featured Driver of the Month” award that rewards employees complying with the safety program and demonstrating other company core values. “Friendly competition is not only healthy, it improves retention.” Cars were always in good hands with Valet Anywhere’s experienced and highly trained valets, and now they’re in even better hands. “Safety and trust are big issues for new customers and prospects. People don’t mind paying a service premium for proven safety and Zendrive helped us demonstrate our commitment to the safety and care of their personal vehicles,” concludes Lee. If you’re frustrated with car parking in New York City, be sure to check out rapidly growing Valet Anywhere.

[zendriveblog]

Safemotos: Riding in the Hands of Safety

Imagine going to Rwanda to visit your son.

You get off the plane and look for a taxi. But you only see motos (motorcycle taxis).

You take a step back, unsure if they’re safe.

Do you get on?

This was the dilemma that Barrett Nash, co-founder and CEO of SafeMotos, had his mom face on her first visit to see her son in Kigali, the capital city of Rwanda.

Nash explains. “There was no way to know if the moto operator was a good driver or bad driver, and in Rwanda, moto accidents are the second leading cause of death - behind HIV/AIDS.”

In fact, eight out of ten traffic accidents in Kigali involve motos. “Most people in western cities don’t risk their lives traveling to work or across town but people in Kigali do it everyday because motos are the faster and cheaper mode of transportation,” explains Nash.

Nash wanted to reverse the trend, so he co-founded SafeMotos, a startup that relies on telematic data—or sensor readings—collected from moto drivers’ smartphones to help make moto drivers and cities safer.

The Economist describes SafeMotos as "an Uber-style app that not only allows passengers to hail a ride, but also gives them some hope of surviving the journey... [they] score the drivers on safety. Only safe ones get business."

From Vision to Reality with Zendrive’s Help

Independent drivers typically negotiate their own rates and maximize their earnings by transporting as many customers as possible each day. But customer experience never mattered because only speed was relevant to the bottom line.

That realization and the growing popularity of mobile devices in the region led Nash and Peter Kariuki, co-founder and CTO of SafeMotos, to begin exploring whether it was possible to measure driver driving safety habits using smartphones. “I spent a lot of time researching telematics and their various implementations. I had a roadmap of features that could be achieved in a meaningful time,” remembers Peter. To track speed, location and accelerometer data, they first had to build an app.

Building a user friendly smartphone app was no easy feat. But the SafeMotos team was able to get help jumpstarting its development by integrating with the Zendrive driving analytics API. The Zendrive technology enables SafeMotos to retrieve telematics data from drivers’ smartphones and monitor how well they drive.

“Zendrive cut two years from our road map,” says Peter, “We had to build the infrastructure surrounding the app's basic functionality so it would have taken us a really long time before we could have developed our own telematics. Plus, since it’s continually updating and improving its product, we don’t have to do anything to maintain our safety advantage.”

Nash agrees: “Building the level of detail that’s in Zendrive’s analytics platform would have taken more bandwidth and people than we had--and then we would have to continually maintain and improve it. It’d be an ongoing distraction. Zendrive is an incredible business accelerator because it allows us to focus on our core business, which is getting drivers and customers to use the app.”

And did SafeMotos approach work?

After running its operators’ accelerometer, gyroscope, and GPS data through a risk model based on American insurance industry equations put into public APIs, SafeMotos has proven its model delivers safer drivers.

Smoother, Safer Rides Also Lead to Higher Customer Satisfaction Scores - And More Tips!

How does safer drivers translate into profitable measures?

The answer is simple. Through higher customer satisfaction scores, reviews and tips.

After a ride, moto customers are prompted in the SafeMotos app to review their experience (on a scale from 1-5). Customers haven’t been shy about letting drivers know they appreciate being picked up on time and more safely transported to their destinations. On average, drivers who get the highest ratings have a 10% higher maximum Zendrive score.

For drivers, the rewards are monetary: every positive review comes with a micro-incentive built into the SafeMotos app. SafeMotos’ smartphone sensors measure each driver’s control, caution, and focus, and this information contributes to monetary rewards. When drivers don’t conform, SafeMotos has a penalty system inspired by futbol/soccer - drivers that are 80-90% compliant receive yellow cards while those below acceptable levels get red cards and have to serve a one-day suspension in the “penalty box”. This type of continuous monitoring allows SafeMotos to actively remove drivers that aren’t safe.

For customers, the rewards are more personal: safety and satisfaction—a combination that SafeMotos continues to advance. With SafeMotos, customers can notify drivers where they want to be picked up (by logging in to the app from their phone) using a localized user interface instead of flagging down a moto on the street. Rather than street maps, which people are less familiar with, the SafeMotos app features a landmark system of navigation “because that’s what people know,” according to Nash. Customers then pay for their trips from their SafeMotos wallet, which can be connected to mobile money, cash, or credit card, and prices are charged by driving distance instead of driver negotiations.

Navigating the Safer and More Satisfying Road Ahead

SafeMotos is gaining considerable traction because of its philosophy and appreciation for what resonates with drivers. “The goal,” explains Nash, “is to help drivers understand what we consider acceptable metrics of safety—for example, speed limits in different areas.”

Since its launch, the service has seen a steady increase in both riders and drivers—and evidence shows the model is working. Fifty drivers in February of this year were accident free.

Still the SafeMotos team is committed to doing more. “We want to change how people treat the road by reminding them that every bad action is seen. We want to nail down the ubiquitous African moto problem, then move on to other vehicle types,” says Peter.

While building safety and service enhancements, the SafeMotos team also remains firmly focused on the greater good. “We’ve learned that you can build a Silicon Valley style application that has a solid social impact anywhere in the world,” Nash assesses. “...and that we can help change the world beyond one application.”

Like SafeMotos, new economy companies are choosing to team with Zendrive to accelerate safety innovation. Connect with Zendrive to learn more.

[zendriveblog]

It’s a Bird… It’s a Plane… It’s Safety Crusader Peatonito!

In Mexico City, you can find a caped superhero confronting cars face to face. He goes by the name of Peatonito - a play on the Spanish word for pedestrian.

In a country that registers 4 million traffic collisions each year, this is no small feat.

At the Vision Zero Cities Conference in New York City last month organized by Transportation Alternatives, we had the pleasure of meeting the superhero himself, who like Zendrive, is on a mission to making streets safer for drivers, passengers, pedestrians, cyclists and cities.

Fast Lane to Action

15 years ago, Jorge Canez, a young political scientist, began investigating transportation policies in his hometown of Mexico City. At that time, Canez was a student who found getting around “the most hazardous thing imaginable.”

Keen on taking his activism one superhero step forward, in 2012, Canez officially donned the mask, and became Peatonito.

Putting the Brakes on Bad Drivers

Today, Peatonito roams the streets twice a week, taking action towards safety in quirky ways like spray-painting DIY crosswalks for pedestrians and stepping down cars.

He thinks the main issue is that drivers are not taking responsibility for their actions. “There are children, grandmothers, dogs walking in the streets. As a driver you have to understand that what you are driving is not just a car but a potential weapon!”

Not only is the public thankful for his protection, Peatonito is also admired by partners such as city and non profit coalitions who advocate for passenger, bicyclist and pedestrian safety.

Peatonito might just be the most beloved figure in the world of street safety.

In addition, Peatonito recommends drivers and fleets work with companies like Zendrive, who provide driver performance tracking and coaching using insights from big data.

“Data is the basis for measuring progress,” says Peatonito. “But if you look at city data alone, you won’t get the whole picture.”

To Zero and Beyond!

Vision Zero is the international movement to set time-bound goals to eliminate all traffic deaths and serious injuries. In 2014, New York City set a goal of 2024 to do this. Later in 2014, San Francisco also set a goal of 2024, and Los Angeles set a goal of 2025. More and more U.S. cities are joining this lifesaving movement.

Peatonito believes that not only will Vision Zero be achieved, but drivers will have changed their behavior in cities and beyond.

His biggest wish that he hopes to come true in the near future are to have less cars on the street and if drivers have to drive, to drive much slower.

“People today drive everywhere, but they can move in more sustainable ways. And even when they’re driving, people need to drive slower. Slower driving = less fatalities.”

And cities are listening. In August 2015, Mexico City’s government presented a new set of road traffic regulations reducing speed limits on major roads from 70km/h to 50km/h. Other Vision Zero cities like London are taking similar steps. In March 2015, the speed limit on some of London’s busiest main roads was drastically reduced to 20 miles per hour.

Peatonito believes that radical changes like these will instigate real results. In Mexico City, more than 52 accidents in every 1,000 are fatal, and these policies will save many, many lives.

To fuel the future of progress, Peatonito recommends targeting mobile minded Millennials and future drivers.

“Millennials are malleable and open to adopting new rules. They can be the leaders that influence their parents, grandparents and future generations to take action. To find a way to share the streets in a peaceful way, we can start by enforcing strict rules, but ultimately we need to start training the future of transportation through future drivers.”

Does your city need a safety superhero? Tweet @zendrive and @peatonito to support Peatonito and invite the caped crusader to your city!

[zendriveblog]

Shuddle: Safer Drivers, Safer Rides, Safer Families

Safe rides for families and kids. That’s the promise with Shuddle.

Often described as “ridesharing for kids,” Shuddle began serving the San Francisco Bay Area nearly 18 months ago. To keep its promise, it knew it had to develop the most comprehensive safety program in the industry. According to a recent published survey comparing data from ridesharing services for kids versus general ridesharing services, Shuddle has done just that.

“We have a rigorous driver selection process,” explains Shuddle’s Driver Training Manager, Amy Gosewisch. “All of our drivers have to meet specific criteria. We have an onboarding team that conducts interviews and provides applicant assistance. We require potential drivers to participate in orientation and education courses. We’re extremely detailed in our records checking and our vehicle inspections, and we don’t accept anyone who isn’t Trustline certified.”

In addition, drivers must have passed California’s background check for in-home child care, a child protection program of the State of California and the California Child Care Resource & Referral Network.

But that’s just the beginning.

On the Road: Monitoring Ride Safety with Zendrive

Once Shuddle identifies and hires a high-quality driver, monitoring that driver’s safety and performance behind the wheel becomes key. From pickup to drop off, Shuddle, with the help of Zendrive, pays close attention to the smallest of details.

Beyond stringent identity check-in, real-time tracking, and ride procedures, this is another way we know Shuddle is superior to other rideshare services,” says Gosewisch. “We have technology built into our app that monitors driving behaviors in three key categories—control, caution, and focus,” says Gosewisch.

The technology developed by Zendrive is embedded in Shuddle’s mobile device app, allowing Shuddle to monitor rides in progress and detect attributes like how fast drivers are traveling, whether they’re obeying traffic rules, if they’re stopping gently, and if they’re steering clear of using their phone while driving.

Data from each ride is captured in a report that is reviewed by Shuddle’s Driver Trainer team and then shared privately with each driver. Gosewisch explains, “To execute well, we need visibility into each ride and Zendrive provides eyes when we aren’t physically there.”

Weekly check-ins then provide opportunities for the Shuddle team to pinpoint areas of improvement and remind drivers to check maps in advance, monitor traffic, and review procedures.

How do drivers feel about the reports? The team believes drivers appreciate the awareness reports bring. Gosewisch describes, “One driver commented that with her reports, she can finally prove she is a safe driver!”

The Shuddle Advantage

As the driver comparison survey data shows, Shuddle and other ridesharing services for kids are proving to be safer. Beyond stringent experience and background requirements, real-time tracking, and delineated ride procedures, ride safety monitoring through Zendrive is “another way we know Shuddle is superior to other rideshare services,” says Gosewisch. “

Not just anyone can drive for Shuddle, and unlike popular general rideshare services, such as Uber and Lyft, Shuddle is allowed and insured to transport unaccompanied minors.

Attracting loyal drivers is another Shuddle specialty. Drivers stay with Shuddle because they enjoy its refreshing culture and scheduling flexibility.

“[Our] very loyal driver community [also] loves kids,” Gosewisch indicates. A former teacher, Gosewisch was drawn to the company’s focus on youth. “It’s an exciting time for transportation in general, and at Shuddle, I’m able to use my child development experience to help solve one of the big challenges for busy families: how to provide safe, scheduled, and smart rides for their kids.”

[zendriveblog]

HyreCar Unites Drivers and Owners, Increasing Hourly Driver Earnings

Meet Joe. He’s a boxer. His dream is to open up a boxing studio. While he pursues his passion, he drives for Uber. Because Joe can’t afford a full-time rental car contract that takes half of his earnings, he rents through HyreCar.

Meet Robert. He lives in Los Angeles. He owns four cars. He offers one of his vehicles for daily rent through HyreCar. He rents to Joe.

HyreCar is a new economy company with a safe online marketplace that brings together for-hire drivers with car owners interested in making money from their vehicles. In its first year of operation, the company is already increasing the hourly earnings of Uber and Lyft drivers and providing safeguards to owners that their vehicles are in good hands.

The on-demand economy is propelling HyreCar’s success. HyreCar founder Abhi Arora explains, “There was a huge supply and demand challenge. Our goal was to make an open platform that would connect owners with people actively searching to use their cars, then to continually add services to improve their experiences.”

Across 26 states, HyreCar now connects four different constituents:

Drivers – 70% of HyreCar customers have two jobs and need the flexible hours that Uber and Lyft offer. HyreCar makes driving more profitable by eliminating long-term car leases and advance reservation requirements while lowering insurance rates.

Car owners – By making their assets available online, owners earn income. At the same time, HyreCar monitors driver safety.

Insurers – Safety information collected through HyreCar gives insurers the data they need to offer drivers better rates than they might qualify for individually.

Uber / Lyft – HyreCar is helping to grow the fleets of these market leaders.

Zendrive Enhances the HyreCar Application

HyreCar’s commitment to improving its marketplace means adding services. For example, the company began sourcing ways to measure driver performance to give car owners extra peace of mind. While the company wanted a software-based solution that would easily fit into a driver’s lifestyle, what it found was hardware solutions that had to be installed and maintained. Only after HyreCar engineers built their own simple, proprietary solution to monitor driver safety did the company discover Zendrive.

According to Arora, Zendrive was an ideal solution for HyreCar to leverage to gain insights from driver data and analytics. HyreCar’s goal with ZenFleets is to monitor driver focus, caution, and control on the road. Together the Zendrive technology and HyreCar application will provide a dashboard that allows the marketplace company to see when Uber or Lyft pickups occur and optimize for insurance savings.

“Already ZenFleets data has helped us prove to insurers that we are committed to safety. Without Zendrive, we couldn’t have gotten the great insurance terms that we got, and in our competitive environment, cutting costs on insurance is a real advantage,” says Arora.

Just like other innovative companies that we introduced you to previously, the HopSkipDrive ride-sharing service for kids and Urgent.ly for on-demand roadside assistance, the smart professionals at HyreCar are taking advantage of new online opportunities and Zendrive capabilities to further their new economy business.

If you’re thinking of driving for Uber or Lyft and need a car or you’re an owner with a vehicle to rent, HyreCar is for you. Check out the requirements and the Zendrive safety features.

[zendriveblog]

Urgent.ly Modernizes Roadside Service, adds Zendrive for Peace of Mind

Flat tires, dead batteries, and accidents happen. But it’s the response that matters. Zendrive customer, Urgent.ly is disrupting roadside assistance by modernizing the customer experience. Its innovative solution goes well beyond traditional service approaches that require advance planning and payment. Urgent.ly supports real-time accident detection, roadside service requests, and tow-truck deployment.

On The Fast Track...Finally

The roadside services industry has been in need of transformation for some time, according to Urgent.ly co-founder and senior vice president of product, Rick Robinson. “Consumers deserve a better experience than what they’ve been getting from traditional methods -- calling an 800 number and waiting around for an hour or more, wondering when and if help will arrive. With Urgent.ly there’s now a much better way.”

No subscriptions. No membership fees. Urgent.ly’s simple, pay-for-use applications connect those who are stranded with nearby providers. Urgent.ly offers free accident detection in partnership with Zendrive to the more than 257 million vehicles registered in the U.S. Through alert capabilities and real-time views, users know exactly what help will arrive, and when.

Under the Hood

The Collision Detection feature, powered by Zendrive, is simple for an Urgent.ly customer with an iPhone to set up and leverage. They simply toggle Collision Detection “on” within the free app’s Settings and then enter a loved one’s name and phone number.

If and when the customer is in an accident instant alerts are sent automatically to the phone number of the loved one on file. Urgent.ly also alerts the driver of the impacted vehicle that immediate access to roadside assistance is available — and help is just minutes away. The charges (for the roadside service) go directly to the registered user's card on file and that individual can watch on their phone’s map in real time as help arrives.

“From the driveway to the highway, people want peace of mind which is why we continue to increase the functionality we provide for free to consumers in our iOS and Android applications,” explains Robinson. “The Zendrive technology is behind our free Collision Detection capability, providing an added level of security and even greater peace of mind to our customers.”  

Simultaneously, Urgent.ly is building a dense network of towing providers and always  improving its algorithm to match car types with the nearest approved and available drivers. Robinson says, “We have reports of distressed drivers experiencing eight-minute turnarounds from request to back on the road. That’s beneficial to both towers and customers.”

If you’d like to share your story about using Urgent.ly’s Collision Detection feature or want to know more about how Zendrive can help your fleet improve driver and passenger safety, contact us at [email protected].

[zendriveblog]

Ride Service for Kids, HopSkipDrive Teams with Zendrive to Ensure, Safe, Smooth Rides

America has become a nation of dual-income working couples. Both spouses work in more than 66 percent of households, reports the Tax Foundation. Yet parents like Janelle McGlothlin and her husband didn’t want their three kids to miss out on enrichment opportunities because of commitments at the office.

“My husband and I were constantly negotiating about who would leave work early to take Gus to gymnastics or Mattie to dance and Ellie to karate,” remembers McGlothlin. “Even with full-time help, scheduling was a challenge and we wouldn’t trust our kids with just anyone.”

McGlothlin soon learned that she wasn’t the only working mom stressing about safely getting her kids everywhere they needed to go. After months of planning and research, including  meeting with Zendrive, McGlothlin and two colleagues, Joanna McFarland and Carolyn Yashari Becher (also busy moms) , launched HopSkipDrive.

Getting Safely from Here to There

HopSkipDrive is a ride service for kids designed to help parents take some of the stress out of their family's busy schedule. Created by three moms who understand the struggle of getting kids around town safely, the service currently operates in the Greater Los Angeles area. What makes HopSkipDrive truly unique, though, is its commitment to making the scheduling of rides with experienced caregivers called “CareDrivers” easy, convenient, and above all, safe.

Because the ride service was built to carry the founders’ kids it includes built-in, stringent safety features that help others feel confident putting their kids in the CareDrivers’ care. There’s a 15-point driver certification process that includes fingerprinting and TrustLine registration. There’s a live support team that watches every ride and also a way for parents to monitor their kids’ trips in real time through the app. Yet the founders wanted even more transparency into what was happening on every ride, which is why HopSkipDrive deployed Zendrive.

According to McGlothlin, “We use technology to solve lots of everyday problems so why not use it to help improve safety, too? Zendrive is an important layer of safety precaution that we’re providing to make parents and passengers feel confident about what is happening during every HopSkipDrive ride.”

Zendrive Technology Enhances Ride Experience  

Zendrive uses sensors on a smartphone to measure HopSkipDrive CareDriver driving and coach them over time to be better, safer CareDrivers . Zendrive’s driver-centric analytics take in a variety of signals to provide scores about how cautious, focused, and controlled a driver is at all times. It works by measuring speed, swerves, hard stops, fast accelerations, fatigue and distracting cell phone use, while taking into account the weather, duration of the trip, time of day, and more. Thanks to Zendrive’s continuous monitoring, HopSkipDrive can ensure safer, smoother rides that kids trust and enjoy.

Although HopSkipDrive has thought through every step in the process, McGlothlin believes most parents, including she and her co-founders, have the same feeling the first time with HopSkipDrive as they have when they hire a new babysitter or send their child in the car with another child’s parent. “What’s different, though, is that we actually know more about our CareDrivers than most people know about a new babysitter—and that’s comforting,” says McGlothlin.

What do her kids think about the HopSkipDrive experience? McGlothlin is finding her son Gus, who is going to gymnastics to build strength and agility, has an added confidence. She confides, “It’s a new normal for all of us and the benefit for him is increased independence with the knowledge that we’ve taken every precaution to keep him safe.”

[zendriveblog]

Why We Constantly Improve Our Products

The Data team at Zendrive announced an update from Algorithm core 1.2 to Algorithm core 1.3 today.  What does this mean to our customers? Will driver scores suddenly change?

In this post I’d like to explain what is so exciting about the ongoing improvements we make to the platform and what it means to our customers.

Let's start with an overview of one important feature of the Zendrive analytics platform. This story begins with the concept of algorithm defined event detectors. Whenever raw sensor data is transformed into an event, a detection algorithm is at work. Using the ever improving, ever growing sensors on your phone, Zendrive can understand deeply the quality and safety of a ride by evaluating detailed sensor data to build an event profile, and then comparing that event profile to thousands of other drivers on similar trips.

It takes humans many years to develop their brains to the point that they can respond to complex events appropriately. We even continue to improve our detectors for years, as long as we are presented with new cases to learn from. The Zendrive event detection algorithms improve in a similar manner, although in a much more rapid pace. They have been trained on tens of thousands of events to learn how to correctly identify important safety events from smartphone sensor signals. Yet we haven’t stopped there. As we continue to improve our libraries of known cases to test algorithms against, we can generate more and more effective event detection algorithms and deploy them. That is where the beauty of the Zendrive server-side detection technology really shines.

A simpler, less accurate, system would be hard-baked into an app or an SDK, and if the authors improved it, your users would need to get a new copy, and only their most recent events (those detected since the upgrade) would be detected with the new algorithm. That means that all of your historical data would be outdated. Not so for Zendrive Analytics. Our tireless data scientists and engineers created a system that can update your driver’s entire history of events to the current level of accuracy without missing a beat, or requiring you to press a button.

Here is how it works. The Zendrive platform pulls driver’s sensor signals and puts them on our server. As soon as a trip’s data has been uploaded, our algorithms crawl through the signals identifying events. A few seconds of activity later and your trip scores and events are sent back to you via the Zendrive API or Zenfleets dashboard. When we update our algorithms, we also update the scores back in time to make sure that all of your data is as up-to-date as possible.

Our team is constantly collecting new driving cases, and testing new algorithms. When an update is significant enough to earn a new name, we will release it to you. We hope you enjoy always-best-in-class event detectors from Zendrive.

[zendriveblog]

Who are Zendrive customers?

Rideshare, roadside assistance, valet, vehicle delivery, traditional fleets, and many more established and emerging industries are using Zendrive to provide safer, superior, and more profitable fleet-based services. What do these customers have in common?

Zendrive customers are made up of smart teams that are modernizing established industries and creating new ones. Urgent.ly, for example, disrupted roadside assistance by drastically reducing customer wait-times and enabling unprecedented visibility into service provider location. Other Zendrive customers are pioneering new industries by solving problems that have never been addressed. For example, HopSkipDrive, Shuddle, and Kidzjet are meeting a need that has plagued working parents for years: how to safely transport their kids to afterschool enrichment activities without risking their day jobs.

These industry-disrupting businesses aren’t just moving quickly to launch cheaper choices; they are building businesses that provide safer, quality services. A recent Zendrive study of ride-sharing data published in Fast Company found that kids-focused services are actually doing a better job than non-professional drivers, which should make parents think twice next time they consider asking a family friend to pick up their kids. These customers and many others trust Zendrive to make their fleet-based businesses

Safer -- Accurate data and driver analytics help businesses demonstrate to customers that their safety promises are sincere; that they are committed to making the passenger journey more secure.  

Superior -- Data is used to coach drivers just getting started and to identify (and reward) drivers performing at and above expectations. Zendrive customers brand their services as premium because of the advantages they provide.

More Profitable -- Safer drivers reduce operating costs by lowering insurance rates, reducing maintenance costs derived from more responsible vehicle use, and reduce the number of delayed service and logistic-clogging for delivery services.

Zendrive customers could not deliver in a scalable, quality manner their product and services using outdated, hardware-based approaches like OBD. Rather, they are leveraging improvements in smartphone and device hardware, Internet-based services for payment and insurance, and data science to build profitable businesses.

Over the next few months, you’re going to hear more about our customers’ growth, success, and lessons learned in this Customer Stories blog series. We’ll showcase company founders, key employees, and unique fleet drivers--all of whom are working to make driving safer for passengers and pedestrians. Stay tuned.

[zendriveblog]

How Determination and Data Can Make Vision Zero Goal A Reality Before 2024

As mayors from around the nation gathered in San Francisco this week for their Annual Meeting #usmc2015, the City by the Bay announced a plan to reduce pedestrian and bicyclist deaths. San Francisco has been a leader in urban transportation initiatives, particularly where safety is concerned. But in spite of this, pedestrian and bicyclist deaths have been on the rise in recent years. San Francisco’s new plan includes restrictions for passenger vehicle turns on Market Street starting in August.

Market Street is a notorious hotspot for bicycle and pedestrian fatalities due to the complexity of the angled intersection of SOMA with the Financial District, high traffic levels, multi-modal traffic, and high levels of driver distraction. Indeed, a recent study by Zendrive found that Market Street is a very dangerous route and, particularly, that the Market & Octavia section is one of the worst spots for driver distraction on Market Street.

"Safer Market Street is a terrific example of policymakers delivering data-driven solutions to keep everyone who uses our roads safer," said Tyler Frisbee, Policy Director of the San Francisco Bicycle Coalition. "The more we can do to eliminate illegal and dangerous behaviors and design safer roadways, the faster the City will eliminate traffic deaths."

“Market Street improvements are an important step in reducing fatalities as a part of San Francisco’s 2024 goal of zero traffic fatalities, termed Vision Zero, and we strongly endorse the initiative and the commitment,” said Jonathan Matus, Zendrive CEO. “However, Zendrive’s analysis found that Market Street is only a part of the problem. Focusing on where fatalities occurred in the past is missing out on the more important piece -- where they are likely to happen in the future. Our data and analytics allow us to provide that insight.”

In a study of bicycle safety, Zendrive analyzed cyclist activity in concurrence with distracted and risky driving and found that driver distraction due to phone use and distraction at high speeds is rampant in San Francisco. In addition to the congested Market Street corridor, distracted drivers mingle at high speed with cyclists all over the city, particularly in bicycle commuter feeder corridors such as Folsom/Harrison, Valencia Street, and Fell/Oak streets, according to the Zendrive study. “These arteries could be included in the initiative, and the next set of fatalities prevented,” Matus said. “Doing this right requires both planning and access to a detailed analysis of driving behavior data.”

In fact, Zendrive’s analysis shows that reducing Market Street access could exacerbate the problem for cyclists on the Folsom and Harrison corridors as Market Street traffic is shunted south.

According to Zendrive, whose mission is to make all driving safer using data and analytics, redirecting traffic will only get us so far. “To achieve Vision Zero by 2024 the city needs to get serious about phone use and speeding, particularly in heavily commuted cycling routes. And the only way to do this in a resource efficient and effective manner is analyzing actual data about driving behavior, which is Zendrive’s expertise,” Matus said.

To support the Vision Zero effort, Zendrive today announced it will make available free of charge its technology and insights to San Francisco, and all other cities participating in the Vision Zero initiative, to use with their fleets.

[zendriveblog]

Zendrive Accident Detection: now anyone can build accident-response features in an app

Today we’re launching Accident Detection, the first-ever service to detect auto accidents using only the sensors on a smartphone. The SDK tells your app when there's an accident in real-time, so you can build features to respond and help, like alerting emergency services, tow trucks, or loved ones, or even giving parents peace of mind or helping mitigate liability costs.

Beyond allowing developers to build emergency accident-response features into their apps, the technology can be incorporated into many other usecases. A roadside assistance app can build notifications for emergency assistance or towing. A ridesharing app can build notifications for emergency contacts in case of an accident. A driving education app can give both students and parents peace of mind by building in multiple types of alerts. A valet parking app can use the detection on the back end, to prove that their driver was driving cautiously and minimize customer and insurance liability in the event of a collision. Delivery fleets can send notifications to recipients so they know deliveries will be delayed.

With highly accurate collision detection for drives going over 30 mph (hard brakes don’t trigger it), the possibilities are endless.

The technology was refined by repeatedly putting phones into crash-test cars and normal cars on roads, and testing and refining the models on both “accidents” (crash-test collisions) and non-accident events (such as hard brakes, phone drops, etc), until the software had an extremely high accuracy rate. There were no instances of false positives or false negatives for rides over 30 mph, where the phone was either in a mount, in a pocket, or in a cup holder.

“BMW is committed to safety on the roads. We supported our portfolio company, Zendrive, by giving them access to our accident testing facilities in order to improve their accident detection algorithms. We are excited to cooperate with Zendrive to improve road safety on this and future projects” said Dr. Ulrich Quay, Head of BMW i Ventures.

Zendrive Accident Detection is initially available for iOS, with the Android version coming soon. The service is now available to developers at www.zendrive.com/developers and can be added to any iPhone app in less than 30 minutes.

Early customers integrating Zendrive’s Accident Detection into their apps and services include:

Urgent.ly

Urgent.ly is America's leading on-demand roadside assistance app allowing customers to track the real-time progress of their service request on a map.  “By adding Zendrive’s innovative Accident Detection technology to Urgent.ly's platform, we will now be able to quickly detect if our customers have been in an accident, immediately ask them if they need emergency or roadside assistance and then quickly connect them to the nearest available help.  Adding Zendrive to our platform allows Urgent.ly to futher our goals of providing drivers the quickest help at their immediate moment of need and lead innovation in the roadside assistance industry." said Surendra Goel, co-founder and CTO of Urgent.ly.

eDriving

"With over 10 million customers and counting, eDriving is the leader in digital driving education and behind-the-wheel training through its DriversEd.com and iDriveSafely.com brands,”  said Celia Stokes, CEO of eDriving. "Driving is a powerful rite of passage--but becoming a safe driver takes both the right training and time behind the wheel. Our mission is to build smart, crash-free drivers. We are intent on using the power of emerging telematic technologies to support both the teens and their parents through the entire process in ways that were not possible even five years ago. By integrating Zendrive Accident Detection into our apps, we are increasing peace of mind that these new drivers will be safe no matter what.”

Luxe

Luxe is the leader of the fast growing on-demand valet parking market - the service will pick up and park cars in San Francisco, LA, and Chicago, with more cities coming soon. "We are committed to making sure that our valets are the safest in the business. " said Craig Martin, Luxe co-founder and CTO. "We want to reassure customers that their car is always in good hands, and one of the ways we do that is use Zendrive's driver analytics. The platform, with the new collision detection feature lets us shorten response times and limits our insurance liability in case anything happens. Zendrive allows us to keep an objective data-driven record that our valet was driving cautiously at the time."

HopSkipDrive

HopSkipDrive is a ride service designed to help busy parents get their kids where they need to go when parents can’t do the driving themselves. "Safety is our top priority, so we’re always looking at ways to raise the bar even higher with the latest safety advancements."  said Joanna McFarland, CEO of HopSkipDrive. "Whether it's our 15-point certification process, or ensuring that we have immediate responses to any event or parental need – HopSkipDrive is designed to give parents the utmost confidence to entrust us with their children. That’s something we fully understand and appreciate, since we’re parents, too."

Learn more about Accident Detection here.   

[zendriveblog]

The Top 10 Riskiest Biking Hotspots in San Francisco due to Distracted Driving

San Francisco is the 7th best city in the US for biking, according to Bicycling Magazine’s 2014 review. Recent additions of new bike lanes and other road infrastructure have helped the city become more friendly to bikers. According to SF Gate, an estimated 75,000 cyclists take to the streets each year — 9% of the SF population. 3.4% of SF workers commute by bike — far higher than the national average of 0.6%. That said, heavy bike and car traffic combined with distracted driving contribute to cycling danger in SF.

SF can do more work to make the city safe for cyclists

2014 SF Police data* shows that a bicycle/car collision resulting in injury or worse happens on average once a day. (This number is likely low, as not all bike collisions are reported.) We combined this data with historical collision records available from transbasesf.org to create a map of bike collisions over a 10-year period. Crash locations are mapped to their closest intersection in SF reporting, and in the past ten years, almost every intersection in the denser parts of the city has had at least one bike collision. Downtown, SoMa, and the Mission are the most collision-prone neighborhoods, with the commute paths down the Valencia Street and Market Street Corridors being the areas with the most dangerous intersections (recent improvements in bicycle infrastructure could well be changing that).

Bike collisions happen on almost every major SF intersectionView high-res full map. Base mapping data creative commons Stamen

Since police data is only retrospective, we wanted to see how else we could use driving and cycling data to identify dangerous intersections and corridors. This new data source could give bicyclists a more comprehensive view of areas in the city that require more caution, or in some cases, complete avoidance.

SF is full of distracted drivers

Zendrive’s technology measures driving safety using only the sensors on a driver’s phone, analyzing the safety risk of a driver or fleet. Within the course of our work, we’ve tracked 1100 drivers over 37,500 miles across San Francisco, and measured cell phone use while driving, among many other safety metrics such as speeding or rapid acceleration. Any of these behaviors can be the cause of a collision with a bike, but distracted driving due to phone use while driving constitutes a special hazard to cyclists. We looked at intersections with at least one reported bike collision to see where drivers were on the phone while at high speed.

Distracted driving due to phone use is prominent in SoMa, Upper Mission, and the Wiggle/PanhandleView high-res full map. Base mapping data creative commons Stamen

The areas with the most driving offenses are SoMa and the 19th Ave corridor — places where it is easy to speed when there’s no traffic, and places where the expectation of speed makes traffic jams more frustrating, and thus more prone to phone use. However, they also not always the places with the most bike traffic (19th Ave, for instance), so are not necessarily the most dangerous for cyclists. To find out what intersections are especially dangerous, we need to combine this dangerous driver index with cycling data.

Lesser-known biking danger spots

We teamed up with Human to look at the areas of San Francisco with the most bike traffic — more bicyclists means a higher chance of a bicyclist being hit — then combined that data with our driver distraction map to discover where drivers and cyclists need to look twice before crossing.

Cyclists should use extra caution in these hotspots of driver phone useView high-res full map. Base mapping data creative commons Stamen

Now that driver distraction is combined with cycling data, we can see where large numbers of cyclists mix with dangerously distracted drivers. There are many factors that influence the rate of collisions at a particular intersection. Some of the most important are simply how many cars and bikes pass through one. But for any individual cyclist, driver distraction poses particular danger that hasn’t yet been well studied. Here we can see how patterns of driver behavior can make certain corridors especially risky for cyclists, even if those intersections haven’t accrued as many crashes yet.

“This study underscores the need for a comprehensive, safety-first approach on our city streets,” said Tyler Frisbee, Policy Director at the San Francisco Bicycle Coalition. “San Francisco can reduce traffic deaths and serious injuries to zero, which is what the City has committed to with a concrete approach known as Vision Zero. Encouraging everyone to pay attention is a crucial part of improving our streets, and hopefully this study will re-emphasize the need to prioritize safety when designing our roadways.”

Of course, there are many factors that go into the safety of an intersection, with everything from protected bike lanes to weather and roadway wear and tear. But no matter where you are, if there’s a pattern of egregiously distracted driving in your route, it’s always good to take extra precautions when you bike!

For more information on this study, check out our FAQ. For more resources on bike safety in San Francisco, check out the SF Bike Coalition or 511.org.

*Police Data is available through a request from the SF Mayor’s Office.

[zendriveblog]

Beyond Safety: Zendrive Analytics Now Helping Personal Activity Tracking, In-Car Hardware and On-Demand Service Platforms

When we launched ZenFleets, we used driver analytics to help fleet managers optimize for safety and cost savings. But we had no idea how creative developers around the world would get when they integrated Zendrive’s analytics into their apps and hardware. Today, we’re excited to support new types of applications and services with the technology, from improving the efficiency of On-Demand service platforms to improving the accuracy of personal activity tracking.

“Our customers and partners in the On-Demand economy are using ZenFleets for driver analytics to improve safety,” said Jonathan Matus, CEO of Zendrive, “but ever since we opened up our platform, other developers have been integrating our technology into their operations in new and innovative ways. We’ve seen companies integrate Zendrive for low-battery driving detection, telematics, On-Demand services platforms, and more.” said Jonathan Matus, CEO, Zendrive.   

These partners are among those integrating our analytics in new and creative ways, demonstrating the scalability and flexibility of our mobile platform:

Pioneer 

Pioneer is a worldwide leader in car electronics like navigation systems and digital media receivers. "Zendrive is bringing driving analytics insights to our products and services portfolio. We’re excited to use Zendrive’s technology to keep our customers safer on the road, while helping us expand our offerings in new directions to increase customer satisfaction. Combining insights about driving behavior with interactive hardware will lead to a safer drive for all,” said Seiji Tanezawa, General Manager of Telematics Business Division, of Pioneer.

Human

Human, one of the most popular activity trackers in the iOS App Store, has integrated Zendrive to improve tracking of driving habits. “The collaboration with Zendrive improves the tracking of car rides for our users. This helps us to improve the accuracy of our activity detection and gives our user an even better overview of their day.” said Paul Veugen, co-founder and CEO of Human.

Dispatch

Dispatch, an On-Demand services platform, helps businesses better manage and gain insight into their network of third party providers by offering a set of mobile and web tools, as well as a set of APIs to access availability, schedule and location in real-time. “Many of our customers are service providers who are on the road all day,” said Avi Goldberg, CEO of Dispatch. “Using Zendrive we help them understand the importance of driving safely and how to prevent rising insurance costs by managing the unsafe drivers in the fleet."

[zendriveblog]

50 New Fleets Using ZenFleets

We're excited to announce that in just three months since our launch of ZenFleets, we've signed up 50 new fleets!  Unlike traditional hardware solutions, ZenFleets uses drivers’ phones - either Android or iOS. This makes it easy for On Demand companies to deploy it to their fleet, helping them measure and optimize safety, cost savings, and more. It’s easier to use, faster to implement, and lower in price than traditional hardware solutions.

“We’ve had tremendous interest in ZenFleets across all segments of the On-Demand economy in a short period of time,” said Jonathan Matus, CEO of Zendrive. “A variety of On Demand service companies are excited about integrating ZenFleets with their applications to optimize their fleet’s safety, reduce costs, and increase customer confidence.”

Customer highlights include:

Shuddle, a rideshare company providing rides for busy families, has been using ZenFleets since November 2014 to measure and optimize the safety of its drivers and passengers. "Ensuring a safe ride is our most important responsibility," said Shuddle CEO Nick Allen. "We partnered with Zendrive to give us the insight we need to be 100% confident that we have the safest drivers on the road.”

Medlert provides a secure, HIPAA-compliant mobile platform for scheduling medical transport and followup care, serving over 1000 medical vehicles and 88 health care facilities. "Working with Zendrive helps us accelerate the shift towards value based care in the medical transport industry," said David Emanuel, Medlert co-founder & CEO. "By combining ZenFleets analytics with our medical transport scheduling platform, we can improve driver behavior and provide a better patient experience.”

SherpaShare, a free financial and analytics mobile app that gives thousands of 1099 contractors across the US the tools they need to manage their driving income, expenses and more, uses Zendrive to help measure mileage. “Since our contractors often drive for more than one on-demand service, Zendrive’s tracking will help them better understand how to more efficiently work. Exact mileage counts help contractors calculate their own costs and understand actual earnings,” said Ryder Pearce, co-founder of SherpaShare.

Stay tuned, there’s more to come!

[zendriveblog]

How Tracking Your Mileage Can Save You Money

Guest post by Zendrive partner Adarsh Pallian, CEO of Trippeo

Whether you’re an employee, run your own business, or are just looking to shave a bit off of your personal expenses, it can save you big bucks to keep tabs on your mileage.

Mileage tracking is no longer a little log book in the glove compartment.   Road warriors and drivers no longer need to worry about remembering to pencil in their first and last mile for every trip.    

My company, Trippeo, is designed to change the way folks manage their travel expenses. With Trippeo’s creative use of Zendrive’s SDK for ambient tracking, keeping a record of mileage is entirely automated, and easier and faster than ever before as it all happens in the background.  With the click of a button, the Trippeo mobile and web app keeps track of your mileage and can be organized into a report and emailed with just a few more clicks.  

Turn on Trippeo’s mileage tracking feature and it works in the background using Zendrive SDK’s ambient technology. With Trippeo’s creative use of Zendrive’s SDK for ambient tracking, tracking mileage is entirely automated.

Some of the ways you can save money by keeping tabs on your mileage:  

Employee Business Expenses

This one is perhaps the most obvious of the bunch - but you might not already be doing it. If you’re hauling your four wheels all over town for meetings or anything else business related, your employer should be willing to cover the associated expense. Track the distance traveled for company purposes with an app like Trippeo and present it to your manager for reimbursement.

Car Insurance

With Usage-Based Insurance, you may be eligible for cheaper vehicle insurance depending on how much you drive. Rather than paying your insurance premium based on a number of assumptions (such as age, gender, commute, etc), usage-based insurance bases your premium on your actual driving habits, including the actual miles you drive and how often.

This trend is popping up in the US, the UK, and in Canada. Check the availability in your area with your insurance provider, it could save you a good chunk of change.

Business Tax Deductions

Business owners may not realize they can deduct their vehicle mileage, or may be too busy to worry about tracking it. But if you’re racking up the miles meeting clients, it can definitely make a difference when tax season rolls around. The IRS requires you to keep a log that shows the total number of miles driven and total business miles for the year. It should also include the date, destination, distance driven and the reason for each trip. With Trippeo, this process becomes seamless.

Personal Tax Deductions

Even if you don’t own your own business there are still ways to make mileage tracking work in your favor.   You can claim a portion of your vehicle expenses on your tax return if they are related to moving expenses or medical reasons (expenses related to primary transportation to medical care facilities) And if you volunteer your time, you can even deduct related vehicle expenses as charitable mileage. Just remember to keep track of it daily, or as it happens, as the IRS does not let you make estimates.  

It Pays

Using Zendrive's technology, Trippeo can track your miles and save you money, so you can get back to driving.

[zendriveblog]

And the winner of Hack The Drive's best safety technology is...

The applications of our driver safety data technology are endless. That’s why we’re excited to announce the winner of $10,000 in Zendrive credits at the BMW Hack The Drive hackathon: RoadAware! They used Zendrive scores and BMW car data to create a ranking system of safe drivers, allowing drivers to compete with friends on safe driving and to receive tips on how to improve driving habits. Congratulations, team!

RoadAware describes their app and its use in driver safety:

“RoadAware is an iOS App for the daily commuter who want to become a more efficient driver.

We are proud of the fact that we were able to combine data from the BMW i3 and smartphone sensors into a sleek looking app that provides you a score on the following four criteria: Focus, Control, [Caution] & Efficiency.

We plan to build a community of efficient drivers who not only make the roads much safer but also keep the environment clean.”

Here’s a look at their iOS app:

Other noteworthy hacks using the Zendrive SDK included:

Amy, an intelligent personal assistant that uses car and mobile sensor data to forecast your car spending by correlating a poor Zendrive score with future low value of the car, sending you SMS and phone call alerts when your score goes below a certain threshold.

We Ride, a family app that helps parents keep track of their kids’ driving habits and encourages safe driving behavior. Here’s a peek at what the WeRide team came up with, using our unique speeding detection capabilities and Caution, Focus, and Control scores:

  These innovative uses of Zendrive’s product capabilities are just a few examples of the impressive results of this weekend’s hackathon. Over 200 developers attended the event that took place from January 9-11, where they competed to win an all-electric BMW i3 and cash prizes by coming up with creative solutions to use data for the connected car. The grand prize winner of the BMW i3 was an optimization system for electric car charging stations.

Our team was at the hackathon to demonstrate Zendrive’s driver-centric analytics capabilities, giving out $10,000 in service credits to the developers who came up with the best app using our SDK. 50 teams competed, 10 finalists presented their work to judges from BMW and partner companies, and several teams used our SDK, with positive feedback on its ease of integration and the possibilities of quantifying driving behavior.

We’re thrilled by these innovations using Zendrive technology to further driver safety in new ways, and look forward to further advancements in the safety and efficiency of the connected car.

[zendriveblog]

Zendrive at BMW’s “Hack the Drive” Car Hackathon This Week in San Francisco

We’re excited to be a part of BMW’s “Hack the Drive” car hackathon in San Francisco from January 10 -11, an event to find innovative new ways to use car data. We’ll be working with BMW engineers, partners, hackers and connected car enthusiasts, who’ll be competing for an all-electric BMW i3, as well as a total of $20,000 in cash and prizes.

We’ll be demonstrating the driver-centric analytics capabilities of ZenFleets, which uses smartphone sensors to measure driver safety, and will be giving out $10,000 in service credits to developers who come up with the best app using our SDK. The applications of driver safety data are endless. It could be used to make a better audio player which doesn’t give notifications during difficult driving conditions, an app to help teens learn to drive, an app that alerts drivers when they’re driving in gas-guzzling patterns, or almost anything else. We can’t wait to see the creativity that comes out of it.

For more information on BMW’s Hack the Drive, visit http://www.hackthedrive.com.