• 17
  • January
    2012

This is the final post in a four-part series focused on winter driving safety.

Thanks to a new smartphone app - available on iPhone and Android - if you do end up stranded in your vehicle during a winter storm, you can easily notify authorities and your emergency contacts.

The app, called Winter Survival Kit, has a number of features, including activities to keep the motorist stranded while waiting for help - such as reading tips on what to do and what not to do while stranded in the cold.

When stranded drivers click the large red "I'm stranded" button on the main display, the app jumps into action. It immediately helps the driver determine their current geographic location and call 9-1-1. In addition, users can input the number of gallons remaining in their gas tank and the app will calculate how long the driver can keep the engine running before the car will run out of fuel.

The app also has several helpful reminders, including one to notify friends and family of where the vehicle is stranded, and second one that will remind the driver to turn off the engine every 30 minutes and check the exhaust pipe for snow buildup, in order to prevent carbon monoxide poisoning.

The app, created by the North Dakota State University Extension Service, was made after a number of severe winter storms in 2010 in North Dakota and South Dakota that resulted in whiteout conditions on the interstates. A number of motorists were stranded in ditches or on rural roadways due to these blizzards.

Source: Government Technology, "App Helps Drivers Stranded in Winter Storms Contact Help," 12/5/11.