Detroit is now the first city in the United States to deploy HAAS Alert Safety Cloud technology on all its public safety vehicles, the largest security breakthrough in emergency response safety ever, and making it a national reference when it comes to adopting novel public safety technology. It is a historic partnership comprising all Detroit Fire Department equipment and certain Detroit Police Department vehicles and can be viewed as a comprehensive approach to the safety of those in need.
Pilot program implementation leads to a citywide implementation
According to Smart Cities World, the City of Detroit has become the first city in the nation to roll out the HAAS Alert Safety Cloud in its public safety fleet, all Detroit Fire Department (DFD) apparatus, as well as some Detroit Police Department (DPD) vehicles. It was the Detroit City Council that unanimously approved the three-year contract after a thorough evaluation in July.
This new technology will be adopted after the successful completion of a pilot program taking place over 10 months, during which ten DFD apparatuses were fitted with the Safety Cloud. In the DFD pilot, the system sent 108,531 alerts to drivers, alerting them to an oncoming emergency vehicle, which is evidence of the technology working in the real-world environment.
The Safety Cloud tech of HAAS Alert transmits real-time digital alerts once a vehicle with active emergency lights comes close to or is near drivers who are using Waze, Apple Maps, Stellantis vehicles (compatible model year 2018 and newer), and Volkswagen vehicles (compatible model year 2024 and newer), as per the official announcement made by Detroit.
Live notifications increase the awareness of drivers
If the residents do not have access to vehicles in which this technology is available as a standard, the City of Detroit helps remind residents to use Waze or Apple Maps, both of which are free to access, to get these necessary alerts and minimize the risk of collisions with first responders.
Executive Fire Commissioner Chuck Simms said, “Detroit is at the forefront in terms of public safety innovation and risk reduction investment. Our emergency response times have hit historic lows – and with HAAS Alert, now we have one more tool in our toolbox to help mitigate collisions as we go to calls of service.
The system also has Responder-to-Responder (R2R) capabilities, which minimize the problems of police and fire vehicles hitting each other during an emergency – a critical safety measure to ensure all police and fire officers are safe. DPD tested this technology on 9 vehicles before the approval of a contract.
Michigan Central partnership allows innovation
The vote to install Safety Cloud across Detroit is not only a technical enhancement of community safety, but it is a testament to the ever-expanding tech sector within Detroit. The technology that is being rolled out as the HAAS Alert was created within the city itself at Newlab at Michigan Central, where the business established its Detroit office in 2022.
This is precisely what Michigan Central has been doing – to bridge local government and communities to emerging technology solutions, said Justin Onwenu, Director of Entrepreneurship and Economic Opportunity in the Office of Mayor Duggan. This is innovation in action to Detroiters, that what is constructed here is actually valuable to all of the neighborhoods.
The comprehensive implementation of HAAS Alert Safety Cloud technology in Detroit reflects a radical innovation in the field of public safety, alongside promising pilot performance and the advancement of a local technology ecosystem. The program would make Detroit a national leader in emergency response technology and show how cities can use local innovation alliances to make communities safer and protect first responders.