It didn’t take the National Safety Council long to denounce a new app that’s being integrated into General Motors’ vehicles.
NSC president Deborah Hersman was highly critical of GM’s new Marketplace app, arguing it will have a noticeable impact on the number of accidents caused by distracted driving, according to Bloomberg Technology.
On Tuesday, GM announced that all model year 2017 and 2018 vehicles with 4G LTE Wi-Fi hotspots will come with Marketplace, an in-car app that allows you to make purchases with participating brands. GM said the app has been designed according to the industry-wide voluntary driver-distraction guidelines, limiting the order process to three or four steps to ensure drivers keep their eyes on the road.
“There’s nothing about this that’s safe,”Deborah Hersman said. “If this is why they want Wi-Fi in the car, we’re going to see fatality numbers go up even higher than they are now.”
Distracted driving currently is a major issue in the automotive industry, contributing to a rise in accidents. In 2016, traffic fatalities in the United States rose by 5.6 percent compared to 2015’s record high.
