Uber releases road safety features in drivers' app in 29 Indian cities

With an aim to prevent road deaths, online cab-hailing firm Uber on Thursday rolled out a series of road safety features in its drivers' app in 29 cities across the country.

The features were first rolled out for driver-partners in Bengaluru as part of a multi-city global pilot.

"We believe that our investments in telematics and analytics can make Indian roads safe again by predicting patterns around driving that lead to crashes and correcting them proactively before the crash", said Apurva Dalal, Head of Engineering, Uber India, in a statement.

The drivers will get daily reports about their driving patterns with suggestions on how to provide a smoother and safer ride.

"Drivers will also get messages in the driver app informing them that mounting their phone on the dashboard is safer than holding the phone in their hands and also alert them about the speed of their vehicles," the company added.

The driver app will also remind the drivers about the importance of taking a break when they need it.

"There was 4.03 per cent reduction in harsh braking events in the first 16 weeks of the launch of the multi-city pilot," the statement said.

Uber has over four lakh driver partners on the platform in India.