People staring into their mobile devices while walking seem to be just about everywhere these days. But rather than just a social nuisance, such people can be a danger to themselves and others, with dozens of injuries reported in Tokyo alone in recent years as a result of being distracted by smartphones while walking.
Now, SoftBank Mobile Corp., one of Japan’s leading mobile service providers, is offering a free application that advises users to stop browsing while walking.
The app, called Stop Aruki Sumaho (stop smartphone-use while walking), uses the device’s sensors to detect walking motion. A yellow banner appears on the screen and freezes the display until the app senses that the owner has stopped walking, SoftBank told JRT.
According to the Tokyo Fire department, between 2010 and 2013 there were 122 people who required emergency medical care due to injuries caused by inattentive smartphone use. There were 36 injuries reported in 2013, up from 23 in 2010.
While some were minor incidents involving users crashing into lamposts, others were more serious, including a 10-year-old boy who fell off a station platform and was nearly hit by a train.
The Tokyo Metropolitan Police released a brochure in January warning that using smartphones while walking “limits one’s ability to observe their surroundings and is extremely dangerous.” Major railway companies, including East Japan Railway Co., have also launched campaigns to raise awareness.
Tokyo’s busiest districts like Shibuya’s famous pedestrian crossing are difficult enough to navigate under the best of circumstances. So just how dangerous are they if everyone is looking at their smartphones while walking? That is something another major mobile carrier, NTT Docomo Inc., studied in a computer simulation posted on Youtube in March.
The simulation found that if 1,500 people were to walk through the crossing while using their smartphones, 103 people would trip or fall, 446 would bump to someone else, and 21 would drop their smartphones. Only 547 would manage to cross to the other side safely before the light turned red.
A SoftBank spokesman acknowledged that it is difficult to imagine smartphone addicts actually installing the new app to remind themselves of their dangerous habit. But parents with children might benefit from the software, he said.
“We are hoping it will raise awareness about this serious issue and encourage users to enjoy their smartphones safely,” he said.
Stop Aruki Sumaho is currently only available for devices running the Android operating system. NTT Docomo introduced a similar software service in December.
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