Boy businessmen target boy racers

Boy businessmen target boy racers

Christchurch will get first look at a new high-tech product seen as a potential weapon for the campaign against boy racers on August 1st.

Accilink is an affordable GPS-based system fitted to a motor vehicle that transmits detailed information about the vehicle’s location, speed and direction via satellite and the internet to its owner.

The launch will take place at St Thomas of Canterbury College where the Accilink developers are year-12 pupils. The product is a leading candidate for honours in the national 2006 Young Enterprise Scheme. The pupils have formed a company, Comet Technologies, to commercialise Accilink, and boy racers are firmly in their sights.

While Accilink will hold greatest interest for commercial fleet operators, Comet directors say it also offers credible new traffic and road safety enforcement possibilities. Managing director Nigel Salmons: “The escalating costs to society of irresponsible young drivers in terms of policing, ambulance and hospital services and the emotional charge on victims needs to be addressed.

“Educating young drivers is clearly insufficient. This product offers the opportunity to enforce any curbs that are placed on the use of individual vehicles by authorities, parents or guardians.”

Comet Technologies has had two vehicles field testing Accilink in Auckland for some weeks and will have equipped vehicles on hand at the launch.

The Accilink concept originated as a ‘great idea’ between the four motoring enthusiasts. They originally envisaged a device to emit an emergency message should the vehicle be involved in an accident, hence the name. Production director Stuart Jackson says this is among a number of possible future Accilink enhancements.

St Thomas of Canterbury has a proud tradition of success in the Young Enterprise Scheme, having won the 2004 national event with the Stopcom mobile phone detection device, and the Canterbury section of the awards for the last two years in a row.

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