Members of the Salamtek Consortium, formed during the launching of a mobile app that will help curb road accidents.   PICTURE: Jayan Orma

Peter Alagos/Business Reporter

In an initiative to reduce traffic accidents, the Qatar Mobility Innovations Centre (QMIC) yesterday announced a mobile app called Salamtek, which means "your safety" in Arabic.
The app, expected to be available via Google app store this month or the next, enables motorists to lock their mobile phones at a certain set speed so as to eliminate distractions while driving.
The app gains significance given that “more than 80% of road traffic accidents in Qatar have been caused by distracted driving, with mobile phone usage being the main cause”, as revealed by Traffic Department director Brig Mohamed Saad al-Kharji on the sidelines of the announcement.
The event was also highlighted by the announcement of Salamtek Consortium, composed of representatives from the Ministry of Municipality and Urban Planning (MMUP), Traffic Directorate of the Ministry of Interior, Ooredoo, Qatar Insurance Company (QIC), and Road Safety Studies Centre (RSSC) of Qatar University.
“The app focuses on developing, deploying and promoting innovative solutions and applications that tackle incidents involving distracted driving as caused primarily by the use of mobile phones,” QMIC executive director Dr Adnan Abu-Dayya told Gulf Times.
QMIC chairman Abdulla al-Talib observed that as mobile phones had become smartphones, the solutions should also be smarter.
“We really need to introduce technology that is smart enough to help lessen road accidents and limit the danger that is coming from it,” he said.
This was echoed by QMIC chief commercial officer Abdulaziz al-Khal who explained that Salamtek solutions and applications were focused on managing driver distraction using "a user-friendly interface that seamlessly changes a driver’s mobile phone behaviour".
Al-Khal said that the app was available in three segments: Salamtek Personal, Salamtek Enterprise and Salamtek Family. Salamtek Personal will be a free app.
The app will automatically log all notifications and user activity while the phone is deactivated. Also, callers will receive an auto reply message after dialling the number of a Salamtek-activated mobile or smartphone.
Companies and government entities can opt to use the Salamtek Enterprise which is available via mobile or web application to allow companies to enforce phone usage policies on their drivers.
It manages phone usage while the drivers are on the road, eliminating driver distraction. Managers can have access to an online web application where they can monitor how their drivers are complying with the company's set phone usage policies.
The Salamtek Family, on the other hand, is optimised for parents. It is also a combination of mobile and web applications giving parents piece of mind once their children leave the house, by managing their phone usage while driving.
The app is also useful for families with domestic drivers and can help eliminate any form of phone distraction while driving.
In addition to Android-based solutions for all these segments, innovative iOS-based solutions will be introduced late in 2014 or early in 2015, QMIC said.
Abu-Dayya said QMIC was now in discussions with research institutes and other ministries. He added that the next phase would be collaborations with companies for the conduct of “significant” pilot programmes using Salamtek technology.