Education

Safety Through Education

The Council has taken on an increasingly important role to educate the public on road safety.  It performs this duty by identifying focal points, initiating curriculum-based programmes and course tools and co-ordinating the work of other groups interested in, or responsible for, road safety.

This multi-agency approach is particularly effective in wide-ranging community education initiatives across all age groups.  Concerted efforts of District Councils, schools, community centres and non-government organisations produce a variety of road safety education.  Lectures and seminars are provided by the Police to various groups and organisations at venues including Road Safety Bus, Road Safety Towns, schools, centres for the elderly as well as other community arenas. Useful messages relevant to specific groups and audiences are delivered.  For example, road safety educational programmes designed for new immigrants to Hong Kong help these newcomers better understand local regulations and requirements.

Youth Education

The Road Safety Towns transform road safety education into a fun experience for children and young persons, within a pleasant and comfortable environment.  Managed by the Leisure and Cultural Services Department, the towns attracted more than 37,000 visitors of all ages in 2010.  The towns are proving a favourite destination of kindergartens and primary schools, as well as clubs, social service groups and elderly service organisations.  Open days with interactive games and performances are regularly held to promote road safety themes.

The four Road Safety Towns in Hong Kong are located at:

Over the years, the Road Safety Bus has continued to deliver road safety messages to students at schools, residents at housing estates and children at youth centres.  The Road Safety Bus underwent a revamp project last year and was decked out in October with a refreshed livery, depicting the road environment and some of the most common crossing facilities in Hong Kong.  The interior of the bus has been further improved, creating a more spacious compartment for road safety education.  Other new features of the Bus include a rolling poster light box, driving simulator, pedestrian lights simulator with control box and buzzer, and an advanced audio-visual equipment with touch-screen display.  With its vibrant colours, simulated road environment and innovative computer games, it attracted more than 50,000 visitors in 2010, underscoring the valuable role it plays in road safety education.

To raise road safety awareness and to develop good practices, we continue to reach out to our children and young persons through interactive educational activities.  The Proficiency Badge Scheme is a Council initiative introduced for children and young persons.  Primary school students who join the Road Safety Patrol are invited to participate in activities such as safe cycling courses delivered by qualified cycling trainers.

School Education

Instilling in students safety awareness and proper attitude in road usage, through school education, remains a cornerstone of our educational work.  Schools are encouraged to adopt a holistic approach crisscrossing knowledge, skills and attitude for the promotion of safety awareness.  In the school curriculum recommended by the Curriculum Development Council, knowing how to protect themselves by understanding basic health and safety issues is one of the learning objectives for young children in pre-school education.  Elements of road safety, such as understanding safety regulations, proper use of public transport and common causes of traffic accidents are incorporated into various Key Learning Areas or subjects.  For example, these curriculum areas include General Studies at the primary level and Key Learning Areas of Personal, Social and Humanities Education as well as Physical Education at the secondary level.  To support the promotion of road safety education in schools, teachers are provided with teaching materials and educational television programmes.  They are also equipped with teaching plans to enhance students' understanding of traffic regulations and the importance of obeying traffic rules.  In addition, life-wide learning activities are organised to impart a broader sense of road safety among students.  Positive values, like responsibility, respect and care for others, which the school curriculum aims at nurturing in students, are indispensable for building a solid foundation for them to be responsible road users.

Cyclist Education

We attach great importance to cycling safety.  In recent years, the Council, the Police and Transport Department have been promoting cycling safety through different forms of publicity and educational activities.  In light of increasing popularity of cycling activities in Hong Kong, we will further strengthen our efforts in this area.  Major undertakings are as follows:

Driver Education

Safe driving is one of the main themes in our road safety campaign in Hong Kong.  The 'Driver Improvement Scheme', which was introduced by the Transport Department in 2002, continues to promote a culture of road safety by providing driving improvement courses for drivers who wish to voluntarily improve their on-road skill, as well as drivers ordered by the court to attend the improvement course.

Once all sessions and assignments are successfully completed, drivers will receive a certificate and, when relevant, have their total driving-offence points reduced by three points.  Since the implementation of the Driving Improvement Course in September 2002, and up to December 2010, nearly 34,700 drivers had attended the course.  Encouragingly, 80% of the participants did not incur any new driving-offence points within six months of completing the course.  The Road Traffic (Amendment) Ordinance 2010 introduced a new offence on 'causing grievous bodily harm by dangerous driving'.  One of the penalties for this new offence is to attend a Driving Improvement Course.

Pedestrian Safety

In Hong Kong, elderly pedestrians remain vulnerable to road accidents.  The Council continues to focus many of its seminars, campaigns, bus parades, road safety messages, publicity and educational programmes on this demographic group, emphasising proper road use.  In particular, TV APIs are broadcast to remind the elderly to 'Love yourself, Love your family, Be a smart pedestrian'.  Young people are enlisted to help the elderly to cross the roads safely.  Elderly Road Safety Ambassadors are recruited to provide peer support to elderly pedestrians by reminding them to use designated crossing facilities, such as traffic light controlled crossings, zebra crossings, pedestrian flyovers and pedestrian subways.

For further information on 'road safety tips and education', please visit:
Road Safety Tips and Education
http://www.roadsafety.gov.hk/eng/tips/tips_drivers.html

Publicity

Road Safety Measures