New roadside assistance app helps drivers in a jam

(Apple)

Mazda has released an app that allows drivers to call for roadside assistance using their iPhone.

The free app, for users of Mazda's roadside assistance program, allows stranded drivers to send their location directly to Mazda using the phone's GPS functionality.

When the call has been acknowledged, the app can display detailed estimated time of arrival information, along with the number of the service provider sent to assist.

Notifications about progress are automatically "pushed" to the handset, freeing up the motorist to concentrate on other priorities.

Mazda says that the app is designed for easy, intuitive use. To speed up the response, it collects basic diagnostic information about the incident through a questionnaire, as well as helpful information such as the license plate of the vehicle, color, and whether a working spare tire is on board.

The App can be downloaded, free of charge, by logging onto http://mazda.crosscountry-auto.com/, beginning April 6, 2010. The App runs on iPhone 3G and iPhone 3GS. It is not available on iPod Touch and at the moment has been introduced in the US only.

Although Mazda says that its app is the "first interactive push notification-based roadside Application in the industry," it is not the first roadside assistance app. American roadside agency AAA offers its own software without push notification.

http://mazda.crosscountry-auto.com/