Crowd-sourced sat nav app, Waze, is partnering with new community safety network, SafeUP, to help women, non-binary and genderqueer people feel safer when travelling alone this busy winter season. As festive celebrations begin and daylight hours shorten, people feel increasingly vulnerable when walking alone – 63% of women reported feeling ‘always’ or ‘often’ unsafe when walking by themselves, and 49% reported feeling unsafe walking alone after nightfall in a busy public place.
Waze and SafeUP’s new collaboration aims to support solo travellers in these moments, helping them feel safer and more confident on their journeys. Now, drivers can locate up to 129 ‘SafePlace’ shelters on Waze through branded location Pins that appear when drivers are near a registered location. Users can also set a SafePlace as their destination when searching for meeting places like ‘bars’ or ‘train stations’ or directly for SafeUP on Waze.
‘SafePlaces’ are registered businesses that offer shelter for people feeling vulnerable walking alone. SafeUP partners with a range of companies including hotels and hostels that are open 24/7, so the partnership with Waze will help users find a SafePlace at any time of day. Once parked, users can continue using SafeUP as normal when walking to a destination.
Ulyana Guseva, Senior Industry Manager at Waze said: “The onset of Christmas party season will see millions of revellers return to the streets to celebrate. We know that women, non-binary, and gender-nonconforming individuals often put their lives on hold during the winter months in favour of staying home, and staying safe.
“This partnership is designed to support both drivers and pedestrians travelling this winter, empowering them to take back control of their daily lives, and hopefully making them feel safer. SafePlaces will be easy to find on the Waze app through branded pins and sponsored destination searches, so whether you’re collecting a loved one or want to park near a SafePlace yourself, you can plan your route accordingly”.
Neta Schreiber, CEO and co-founder of SafeUP adds: “We are proud to partner with Waze to create awareness of the SafePlaces initiative, a community that enables businesses to become safe havens throughout the city and support women, non-binary, and genderqueer freedom of movement in their everyday lives. Our mission is to empower as many people as we can to feel safe, confident and free.”
The partnership will run from November 29 2022 – February 28 2023, exclusively on Waze in the UK.
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