Award winning young driver campaign is back for third year
The controversial award winning For my girlfriendTM young driver road safety campaign will once again run across Hampshire and the Isle of Wight during February 2006. As has been the case for the last three years, campaign activity will peak in the run-up to Valentines Day.
For my girlfriendTM is a research based campaign that confronts young male drivers with the appalling prospect of killing their girlfriend while they are driving too fast. It targets males because more young females die as passengers than as drivers – often while being driven by their boyfriend.
The 2006 campaign uses a poster that features picture of the girl in a crashed car surrounded by members of the emergency services. The headline says: ‘If you don’t like this many blokes round your girlfriend – slow down’.
The campaign poster is being distributed to places where young people are likely to be found in significant numbers. It will appear in sixth form centres, colleges and universities, nightclubs and pubs, leisure centres, major employers and male washrooms in pubs and nightclubs.
Young driver research conducted in 2000 confirmed that young drivers – especially young males – find it almost impossible to imagine killing or injuring themselves in a road crash. The study also revealed that the outcome they dread most is killing or maiming someone they are close to – possibly a girlfriend or best mate – who is travelling in a car driven by them. This outcome is considered worse than killing or injuring a pedestrian (even a child) or an unknown third party. For my girlfriendTM plays on this emotional vulnerability in a bid to make young drivers think about this awful prospect.
The campaign received a Prince Michael International Road Safety Award in 2004. “Young, newly qualified drivers are especially vulnerable,” said Adrian Walsh, director of Roadsafe, the organisation behind the Prince Michael Awards. “This ingenious campaign has been outstandingly successful at getting them to think twice and to realise how responsible they really need to be when behind the wheel.”
Posted: Monday, February 06 2006
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