The Kansas Department of Transportation (KDOT) and the Missouri Department of Transportation recently partnered to initiate a pilot program designed to alerts drivers when motorist-assist vehicles are nearby.
Digital alerts will be sent out via the Waze mobile navigation app to drivers in Kansas City, Wichita, Salina, and Topeka when they are approaching Kansas Motorist Assist Program vehicles. In Missouri, alerts will be sent when approaching Emergency Response program vehicle.
The vehicles must actively be providing roadside services for the alerts to activate.
“We’re excited to adopt this technology to make our roads safer for both our emergency responders and highway motorists,” Shari Hilliard, intelligent transportation systems engineer for KDOT, said. “We believe this digital alerting service will prevent collisions and save lives, and we’re pleased to be partnering with Missouri officials to pursue this goal together.”
The technology uses cellular technologies and GPS to track emergency vehicles. Motorists will receive enough warning to slow down and change lanes safely. This will put drivers in compliance with Kansas’ Move Over Law and Missouri’s Move Over, Slow Down law, legislation designed to prevent collisions and accidents involving first responders.
Twelve vehicles in Missouri and 19 in Kansas are participating in the pilot program.