BOSTON–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Cambridge Mobile Telematics (CMT), the global leader in smartphone telematics, is partnering with the Vision Zero Network to expand the network of cities they are helping to improve road safety. Together, the organizations are raising awareness of risky driving behaviors and bringing proven solutions to address the urgent safety problem that results in 40,000 traffic deaths in the U.S. each year.

CMT and the Vision Zero Network are specifically looking to replicate the success of their three previous Safest Driver contests in additional cities, supporting the fast-growing Vision Zero initiative to reach zero traffic deaths and severe injuries.

“The Vision Zero Network is proud to be working with CMT to share the successes of the Safest Driver program,” said Leah Shahum, founder and director of the nonprofit network. “More than 30 communities have committed to Vision Zero’s life-saving goal, and that number is growing. We hope more Vision Zero communities will benefit from the programs CMT is leading to encourage safe driving.”

The Safest Driver contests engage city residents with CMT’s telematics technology and competition to enable better driving behavior. Users download a free smartphone app that monitors driving performance, such as at-risk speeding, phone distraction and hard braking, and provides actionable insights and gamification to encourage improvement.

Over the past three years, CMT partnered with numerous cities and insurance companies to launch the Safest Driver contests, including Arbella Insurance Foundation and the Mayor’s Office of New Urban Mechanics in Boston and the City of Seattle and PEMCO Insurance in Seattle.

Most recently, in June, the City of San Antonio and USAA launched San Antonio’s Safest Driver. The contest ended on Sept. 3 and winners will be announced in the coming weeks.

“We are glad to continue our relationship with the Vision Zero Network to bring safer driving to more cities across the U.S.,” said Katherine Wellman, CMT’s vice president of product and marketing. “This is an exciting opportunity to drive awareness of the problem and offer a real, tactical solution to fix it.”

To inform cities of the dangers of distracted and unsafe driving, as well as how to approach the problem, the Vision Zero Network is hosting a webinar with representatives from CMT, the City of Seattle and the City of Boston. Panel members will discuss their experiences with the contest, how they reached community members in each city, and how the program incentivizes safer driving.

The “Safe Driver Programs Drive Awareness and Improvement” webinar panel will feature Katherine Wellman, vice president of product and marketing at Cambridge Mobile Telematics, Kris Carter, co-chair of Boston Mayor’s Office of New Urban Mechanics and Allison Schwartz, strategic communications advisor at Seattle Department of Transportation.