Despite warnings from concerned mothers and public safety officials against walking alone, sometimes students will find themselves with somewhere to go but nobody to go with.
In these cases the new app, Companion, would be useful.
Companion is a free app created by five University of Michigan students which allows users to plug in a destination and invite friends, or companions, to virtually accompany them.
The companion doesn't have to download the app in order to participate.
As the user walks towards their destination, the app will track them and use the phone’s built-in motion sensors to detect different signs indicating the user might be in danger, such as if the user’s headphones are ripped out, if they start to run, if they stray off their path or if they fall.
If any of these things happen, a button pops up asking the user if they are OK.
The user has 15 seconds to confirm they are OK before the app alerts their companion, starts emitting a siren-like sound and displays a button to call the police.
The companion watches the user via virtual map and is alerted if the user pushes the "I Feel Nervous" button, which is readily available on the home screen of the app in case the user feels unsafe.
In the event of an emergency, the companion even has the option to call the police for the user.
However, if nothing goes wrong while the user is en route to their destination the companion will simply get an alert letting them know the user made it to the desired location safely.
Police Lt. Keith Walton, member of Auburn University's department of public safety and instructor of the campus’ Rape Aggression Defense program, said the app could be a useful tool.
“I think it could work … it could us help us out at public safety," Walton said. "It could help students feel a little safer.”
Companion partnered with the University of Michigan bringing it data gathered anonymously.
This data informs the University of Michigan of places where students press the “I Feel Nervous” button and shows them the routes students take.
Companion is currently in the process of creating partnerships with other universities as well.
Susan McCallister, associate director of information and education in Auburn University's department of public safety, said a partnership with the app might be something Auburn University would consider.
“I think we are definitely looking for more feedback from students and would be willing to consider looking at this," McCallister said.
However Melvin Owens, executive director of security and public safety in Auburn University’s department of public safety, warns against relying on the app to get users home safely.
“What we’ve said is that we don’t want you to walk alone, first of all," Owens said. "Secondly, we provide on-campus transportation from one location to another, and we’ve asked students to use the transportation provided rather than being out walking alone. We don’t suggest walking alone whether you have the Companion app or any other app.”
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