At Volkswagen we make safe cars. But what if we could engineer safer drivers?

In NZ, speeding was the sole contributing factor in 32% of all urban road fatalities and 28% of all open road fatalities between 2011 and 2014. The highest of any contributing factor.

Casualty and fatality on the road don’t occur because our cars aren't safe enough - they occur because of poor decisions made by drivers.

These poor decisions are the result of momentary lapses in judgment.

Our rational, responsible selves take a backseat to the irrational person racing to a meeting, or overtaking a frustratingly slow driver.

This idea disrupts behaviour at this critical moment.

The Volkswagen Reduce Speed Dial is a replacement panel for the speedometer in Volkswagens. It follows all of the clarity and safety restrictions of a standard speedo, but the dial is personally hand written by a loved one.

This simple, personal mnemonic reminds drivers what they have to live for at the exact moment they consider speeding.

Inserted into select Volkswagen families Golfs, we monitored their driving habits before and after, to understand if we could in fact, engineer safer drivers.

Turns out, we can.

Following the installation of the personalized speed dial, all of the families involved reduced their speed in multiple driving situations.

The Reduce Speed Dial’s long-term application is currently being considered by Volkswagen for global implementation.

“The Reduce Speed Dial initiative has changed the way we look at car safety.”

Tom Ruddenklau, GM Volkswagen NZ.

A digital application was created that enabled consumers to create a speedometer for a loved one. A group of digital tools enabled them to recreate the speedometer’s numbers, and draw a simple, personalised image to be placed in the centre of the speedometer. The app translated the creation into a legally accepted Volkswagen Golf speedometer, and the resulting designs were inserted into our cars.

We partnered with Carvoyant to monitor driving habits and deliver telemetry before and after the installation, to understand if we could in fact, engineer safer drivers.

Following the installation of the Reduce Speed Dial, all of the families involved reduced their speed in multiple driving situations. Some examples are below:

- One family had no recorded speed infringements after the installation of the personalised speed dial

- One family reduced their top speed by 19kmh from a max of 123km to a max of 104km

- Half of the drivers’ maximum speeds reduced after fitting their personalised speed dial

- Three out of the four drivers reduced their incidence of speeding in 100km zones by 50%.

The Reduce Speed Dial’s long-term application is currently being considered by Volkswagen for global implementation.