A new campaign has launched in Scotland, encouraging young male drivers to ‘imagine Gran is in the car’ to prevent them from slipping into bad and dangerous habits.
The #DriveSmart campaign, developed by the Scottish Government and Road Safety Scotland, features a series of larger-than-life ‘gran’ characters, who unexpectedly appear in the car while their grandsons are driving.
The ads depict a series of humorous scenarios with the grans addressing unsafe driving behaviours including mobile phone usage, passenger distraction and driving too fast.
A survey published to accompany the campaign reveals more than 61% of Scottish men aged 20-29 years consider themselves to be either very good or excellent drivers. However, figures show more than 2,000 were involved in collisions in the last 12 months, with 314 killed or seriously injured.
The campaign will run across a variety of channels including TV and catch up TV, cinema, digital, PR, and podcasts. A series of interactive events will also take place across the country.
Road Safety Scotland says young men change their driving behaviour depending on who they have as a passenger, and claim to drive better when they are carrying ‘precious cargo’ like their gran.
Michael McDonnell, director of Road Safety Scotland, said: “Young men are prone to over-confidence in their abilities, a misplaced sense of control and a desire to push themselves and their cars to the limits.
“This campaign will address some of the key contributing factors that lead to casualties on Scotland’s roads in a way that young men will take notice of.
“Next time the drivers see themselves slipping into bad habits, they should imagine Gran is in the car with them.”
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