Cory Hohs' idea was inspired by a close call with a Chicago fire truck on his motorcycle, but his new app, which warns drivers to the presence of emergency vehicle traffic, is being tested first in Grand Rapids.
That's because the city's fire department was not only willing to take part in a pilot, but the agency also let Hohs and his two partners gather research as they rode on fire trucks during emergency calls.
"To be honest, they have been so open and so helpful," said Hohs. "I don't think we are going to get that in other cities."
The technology has the potential to cut down on the estimated 60,000 crashes that happen every year across the country while emergency vehicles travel to calls, according to Hohs' research.
Drivers' slower response time in pulling out of the way of oncoming fire trucks, police cars or ambulances also can be blamed on technology. Cars are now designed to cut down on outside noise, while the interiors make it easier to turn up the volume of their music, settle into phone conversations and pay attention to automated directions.
"It can really be hard to hear us coming down the road," said Capt. Brad Brown in the fire department's office of strategic planning. "If this makes citizens safe and we can help with that, we are open to that."