“Mobileye” warns drivers of impending collisions

By Reshma Ailmchandani, Channel NewsAsia, 26 May 2014

In a bid to reduce road accidents in Singapore, the "Mobileye” programme was launched on Monday to encourage companies relying on heavy vehicles to adopt the safety device in their vehicles.

The Mobileye device warns drivers of impending collisions.

There has been an increase in the number of fatalities involving heavy vehicles -- from 32 deaths in 2012 to 44 last year.

The Mobileye provides an extra eye for road users that signals if one’s vehicle is crossing lanes, going too near a vehicle or pedestrian, or driving above the speed limit.

It comes in two parts -- a camera senses the dangers, and sends signals to the device to alert the driver of any impending accident.

Singapore Transport Association chairman Dave Ng said: "Most of the time, there is a lot of blind spots on the vehicle, so sometimes the driver's view and the pedestrian's view might be different.

“We need the driver to be more focused on the road. But sometimes, due to hot weather or traffic jams, the concentration will not be there. With this system installed, the driver will have an extra pair of eyes to keep them aware of their surroundings.”

Real-time data can also be sent back to the office via GPS so that companies can capture the driver's behaviour.

Apart from having safer roads, some companies involved in the initiative hope that Mobileye will bring about improved productivity.

Robin Lee, group chief operating officer (COO) of Bok Seng Group, said: "Safety will really lead to productivity because hopefully, there will be fewer accidents, so less injuries and less labour time down.

"With less downtime due to accidents, I think there will be substantial saving in labour as well as increased productivities.”

Post by Home Team News (Singapore).

The Mobileye (including the monitoring system) costs S$2,675.

Singapore Transport Association members get up to 70 per cent subsidy under SPRING Singapore's Capability Development Grant.

Drivers not under the scheme may be able to purchase the device for S$1,337.

Although the current programme limits the funding to 30 vehicles per company, some companies have expressed their interest to fit the technology in their entire fleet.