New technology could prevent 1K bicyclist's deaths each year

PEACHTREE CORNERS, Ga. - New technology designed to keep cyclists and pedestrians safe was showcased for the first time at a bike race in Peachtree Corners Wednesday night.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 1,000 cyclists died and more than 130,000 are injured on public roadways every year in the United States. This technology allows cyclists and drivers to be alerted of each other before they're even in sight. 

"It's bike-to-vehicle direct communication," said Reid Sigety with Spoke Safety.

"You think about our kid, out riding their bike, crossing the road, sometimes they're not seen by that driver with the human eye, so this technology can make them seen," said Peachtree Corners Assistant City Manager Brandon Branham.

This is not just for those on two wheels. It's call VRU2X or Vulnerable Road Users to Everything, by Spoke Safety.

"This device can be on a bicycle, on a motorcycle, on an e-scooter. We're even looking at putting this on our construction workers," said Branham.

In a demonstration of the technology, a bike had a small device connected to it with a chip that communicates with a car equipped with a chip. The driver of the car was alerted that a bike was coming and from which direction. The biker also gets an alert.

"You'll get an associated light as a cyclist, so you know the vector of the threat," said Reid Sigety with Spoke Safety.

Now they are working on an app for that.

"Bring together the apps on our cell phones, to allow us to communicate from a car, to a cyclist, to a e-scooter, to a driver all over cellphone network," said Branham.

Some of the Peachtree Corners city vehicles will use the technology to improve safety for their employees who will be mowing or doing other work along the side of the road.