Publicity

Achieving our vision of road safety requires a concerted effort in multiple areas, especially publicity. In 2017, the Council strengthened its existing publicity tools and created new platforms to highlight the most pressing road safety concerns in order to raise the community’s awareness of road safety.

Elderly Pedestrian Safety

Publicity activities throughout the year continued to address the safety of elderly pedestrians. The Council worked closely with various stakeholders to conduct education and publicity campaigns in areas with relatively high numbers of traffic accidents involving elderly pedestrians. Much of this work was focused on pedestrian education. The elderly were reminded to use any road crossing facilities provided, such as signal-controlled pedestrian crossings, zebra crossings, footbridges and pedestrian subways.

The Council held a phone-in quiz competition from July 2017 to January 2018 in conjunction with Radio Television Hong Kong, involving 40 teams from elderly centres in different areas of Hong Kong. The final competition added the element of a ‘Road Safety Story’ related to our daily life, successfully disseminating messages of elderly pedestrian safety to the public.

Cycling Safety

Cycling safety continues to be a concern among the public. The Council and the government promote cycling safety extensively through various publicity channels. The number of traffic accidents involving bicycles decreased 8.1%, from 2,087 in 2016 to 1,917 in 2017.

Pamphlets conveying relevant traffic regulations, responsibilities of cyclists on the road and safety advice and rules when using cycle tracks are widely distributed to the public, including cyclists, pedestrians and employers of staff members who cycle to make goods deliveries. A Road Safety Bulletin entitled Cycling on Cycle Tracks reminds cyclists of safety rules and tips while cycling.

In November 2017, the Council and the Police conducted a publicity campaign to promote safe cycling and the importance of wearing a helmet and other protective gear. The ‘Tsuen Wan District Road Safety Carnival’ was held at the Sha Tsui Road Playground in Tsuen Wan. The Council also organised a ‘Safe Cycling Training Programme’ to strengthen primary and secondary students’ knowledge of riding rules and safety tips.

The Transport Department operates a Cycling Information Centre (CIC) website (http://www.td.gov.hk/mini_site/cic/en/) to provide the public with one-stop information platform on cycling. The CIC provides relevant information and reference materials such as cycling training, safety tips, applicable traffic signs and road markings, and relevant laws/rules for cyclists and other road users to help promote a safe cycling environment.

On 20 January, the Road Safety Council and Radio 5 of Radio Television Hong Kong co-organised the Elderly Pedestrian Road Safety Quiz Competition (Final).

Anti-Drink Driving and Anti-Drug Driving

The number of drivers arrested in traffic accidents involving drink driving decreased 7.1% from 255 in 2016 to 237 in 2017, while the number of drivers arrested in traffic accidents involving drug driving was seven in 2017, remain unchanged when compared with 2016.

The Council is working to enhance awareness of road safety through publicity and education. To remind people not to drive after drinking and to highlight the adverse effects of drugs on their driving ability, the Council will continue its use of the slogans ‘If You Drink, Don’t Drive’, ‘Drug Driving – Never Risk It’ and ‘Drug Driving – Zero Tolerance’ to disseminate the messages to all sectors of society.

The Council reinforces its anti-drink driving and anti-drug driving messages by deploying banners on flyovers and footbridges, stickers on parking meters and advertisements on buses, and conducts publicity events with the Police in entertainment areas throughout the territory. The campaign against drink driving was maintained through a series of proactive programmes.

In partnership with the Police, the Council held a publicity campaign in Lan Kwai Fong during October 2017, and ‘Smart Driving Bus Parade 2017’ at the Hong Kong Cultural Centre piazza in December 2017 to promote anti-drink driving and anti-drug driving. These publicity campaigns attracted wide media coverage.

The Council will continue to conduct anti–drink driving and anti–drug driving publicity campaigns, and the Police will increase enforcement action to enhance safety awareness among the public and to change undesirable behaviour among drivers.

On 18 February, the Road Safety Council and the Hong Kong Island Traffic Headquarters of the Hong Kong Police Force jointly held the North Point Pak Fuk Road Safety Town Open Day cum Opening Ceremony.

On 20 June, the Road Safety Council and the Hong Kong Island Traffic Headquarters of the Hong Kong Police Force jointly held the Elderly Pedestrian Safety Tour in Hong Kong Island at Siu Sai Wan Community Hall.

Driving Attentively

‘Driving inattentively’ has been the top driver contributory factor in traffic accidents for the past five years. Since 2014, the Council has promoted the theme of ‘Driving Attentively’ to remind drivers to pay more attention whilst driving. A new radio API about the ‘Two-second Rule’ was launched on 6 February 2017 to remind drivers to keep a safe distance from the vehicle in front. In addition, a new set of TV and radio APIs, entitled ‘Be Attentive To Road Works, Stay Alert While Driving’ and featuring popular singer Jackson Wan Kwong, was broadcast from 4 December 2017. This set of APIs appeals to drivers to always drive attentively, keep at least a two-second distance from the vehicle in front, pay attention to traffic signs, including road works signs, and discourage the use of mobile phones while driving.

In November 2017, the Council and Hong Kong Police Force jointly held the ‘Attentive Driving Kick-off Ceremony and Light Rail and MTR Bus Road Safety Campaign’ in Siu Hong, Tuen Mun. The event successfully spread messages about attentive driving and road safety to the public.

Student Pedestrian Safety

An analysis of pedestrian casualties involved in traffic accidents revealed that the casualty rates involving fatalities and serious injuries among victims aged over 65 was the highest, followed by those aged between 10 and 14. The Council acted to enhance the road safety of this age group by adopting ‘Student Pedestrian Safety’ as one of the main themes of its publicity campaigns.

It is of paramount importance to instil the concept of road safety in students. School education is essential for enhancing students’ road safety awareness and reducing traffic accidents involving students. To support schools in implementing road safety education, the Education Bureau (EDB) developed and uploaded relevant learning and teaching resources to the EDB website. In addition, the Road Safety Bulletins are regularly distributed to kindergartens, primary and secondary schools and promoted on the EDB homepage.

On 4 July, the Road Safety Council and Radio 5 of Radio Television Hong Kong co-organised the Elderly Pedestrian Road Safety Quiz Competition 2017 Kick-off Ceremony.

On 5 November, the Road Safety Council and the New Territories North Traffic Headquarters of the Hong Kong Police Force jointly held the Attentive Driving Kick-off Ceremony and Light Rail and MTR Bus Road Safety Campaign at Siu Hong Station.

Safe Driving and Health Campaign

Every year, to strengthen safe driving skills and enhance health awareness among commercial vehicle drivers, the Transport Department runs a ‘Safe Driving and Health Campaign’. A wide range of services and activities were delivered in the 2017 campaign, focusing on four major themes: ‘Safe Driving Attitude and Behaviour’, ‘Respect Other Road Users’, ‘No Drink Driving and Drug Driving’ and ‘Maintain Good Health Conditions’. The campaign programme included the dissemination of safe driving and health messages through radio broadcasts and other publicity channels, and the provision of free health checks to commercial vehicle drivers.

On 12 November, the Road Safety Council and the New Territories South Traffic Headquarters of the Hong Kong Police Force jointly held the Tsuen Wan District Road Safety Carnival at Sha Tsui Road Playground in Tsuen Wan.

Targeted Safety Messages

The broadcast of APIs on various media platforms is an important and effective tool to promote road safety messages to the community. A number of APIs that promote the Council’s five main themes – ‘Elderly Pedestrian Safety’, ‘Cycling Safety’, ‘Anti-Drink and Anti-Drug Driving’, ‘Driving Attentively’ and ‘Student Pedestrian Safety’ – will continue to be shown on television. ‘Driving inattentively’ has been the top driver contributory factor in traffic accidents for the past five years. A new set of APIs has been broadcast on TV and radio since 4 December 2017 to remind drivers to be attentive whilst driving.

The Council website

The Council website can be found at: Road Safety Council

The Council website describes a range of road safety features and provides online access to all the Council’s publications, useful statistics and links. It aims to disseminate road safety information to the public effectively and recorded a daily average of 2,701 visits in 2017.

The Council will continue to explore the use of all media platforms to best reach target audiences with tailored messages.