Your smartphone can now save your life while you’re on the road; just download this free app

According to the World Health Organization, there were an estimated 1.35 million road-related fatalities in 2016. Of this number, 22 percent were pedestrians.

In the Philippines, there were a reported 12,690 traffic-related fatalities by the end of 2016, with almost half of the fatalities being the most vulnerable road users (motorcyclists, cyclists and pedestrians). That means every day, over 34 Filipinos die due to road accidents. In Metro Manila alone, collisions average more than 200 incidents daily.

A smartphone app has now been developed to use what has become one of the most common modern communications tools into a potential lifesaver on the road.

Croxtec (pronounced as “cross-tek”) is the brainchild of balikbayan Debbie Anne G. Macariola-St.John. After 40 years in the Bay Area and 24 years of work experience in the US automotive industry, Debbie came home and chose her country of birth as the pilot market for Croxtec. This pedestrian safety app is the flagship product of her up-and-coming technology ventures company, Djanco Information Technology Solutions.

Debbie Anne G. Macariola-St.John

Croxtec is the only mobile application to date that focuses on providing an early warning alert to both motorist and pedestrian if there is an impending danger, thus helping both pedestrians and motorists become more mindful of the other vehicles and pedestrians in their immediate environs. Once a user signs in, Croxtec immediately identifies him or her as either a motorist or pedestrian and sends alerts on whether one is in the Croxtec Safezone, Caution Zone or Unsafe Zone.

Its pilot launch in the Philippines comes with a number of reasons. The country has some of the busiest and most dangerous streets in Asia, while at the same time, its population also has one the highest smartphone penetrations in the world. With this, Macariola-St.John believes that Croxtec can gain a firm foothold on the local populace and play a key role in preventing traffic-related injuries and fatalities, and eventually make that leap to other countries.

The Croxtec app is now downloadable for free from Google Play and from the websitewww.croxtec.com.ph.

Macariola-St.John stressed that aside from the Croxtec app being free and easy to download, it is customizable. “Anybody that acquires the app and gets involved in it, we can tailor it to fit their needs. There’s already vibrate, tone and voice alerts, so you don’t have to actually look at your phones,” she said.

“Croxtec is your personal armor, and I think that if people take the time to download and pay for games and music on their smartphones, why not download an app that will save your life, for free?”

She disclosed that her team is working on making the app available for Apple users, as well. “The reason why it’s on Google Android first is that our working masses are generally Android users, so we wanted to target first the general masses,” she explained.