A new hard-hitting campaign to raise road safety awareness

Every year, accidents – some of them fatal – involve public transport vehicles, such as buses, coaches and trams. Among the main causes are road users’ distractedness, exacerbated by constant connectivity, and the growth of new forms of mobility, increasing the number of ways that public space is occupied without awareness of the associated dangers. This serves as a reminder of the importance of shared vigilance in public spaces. In its belief that safety is the primary strategic responsibility of any public transport operator, the Keolis Group, in partnership with Île-de-France Mobilités and Sécurité Routière, today launched a nationwide campaign in France entitled ‘Have we got your attention now?’, with a clear objective: to bring about a lasting reduction in accidents involving third parties around its vehicles.

In line with Keolis’s new strategic plan, which places safety at the forefront of its priorities, the campaign ’Have we got your attention now?’ underlines the Group’s commitment to playing a leading role in road safety in public spaces.

This commitment to safety is developed through a shared sense of responsibility embraced by drivers and road users alike. Bus, coach and tram drivers, who receive regular training, remain constantly alert to the area around their vehicles, while alongside them, pedestrians, cyclists and motorists must show equal dedication to this collective effort.

This demanding, positive and exemplary safety culture is reflected in concrete, consistent and recurring actions:

Through this campaign, Keolis aims to bring passengers onboard in its efforts. Consequently, with trained drivers and vigilant passengers, this shared responsibility will in the long term lead to a safer public space.

This ambition ties in with that of Île-de-France Mobilités, and its efforts undertaken to improve road safety, having invested over 4 billion euros in renewing its bus fleet. All new buses are fitted with the latest safety devices and driver-assistance systems that comply with the most up-to-date standards. Furthermore, Île-de-France Mobilités has in recent years run regular campaigns to highlight the basic rules of safety and sharing road space. For several years now, awareness campaigns have been conducted on bus blind spots to highlight the danger they pose to pedestrians and cyclists. Recently, a multi-operator campaign was launched on safety around tramways, aimed in particular at pedestrians, cyclists and users of personal mobility devices (scooters, etc.), who account for 84 per cent of fatalities and serious injuries in accidents around tram lines.

With its campaign on safety around tramways, Île-de-France Mobilités launched its first ever multi-operator campaign across the entire Paris region aimed at raising awareness amongst pedestrians, cyclists and users of personal mobility devices of the need to remain alert around tramways.

The campaign was rolled out in two phases: the first on social media featuring a video of a tram disguised as a monster taking to the tracks in a real street, and the second consisting of a poster campaign at tram stops, together with videos on social media, featuring three drivers each recounting their experience of an emergency braking procedure they had to perform to prevent the worst from happening – and taking six seconds to stop. This campaign generated nearly 30 million views on social media.

Keolis, for its part, is also introducing practical innovations, which have been trialled or rolled out across the Group’s subsidiaries in the Île-de-France region, such as:

• a polyurethane barrier fitted beneath the chassis to close out the gap between the front and rear wheels and prevent a fallen pedestrian or cyclist from passing under the rear axle;

• driver assistance systems (front, rear and side radars and cameras) which alert the driver to the presence of a vulnerable road user, indicate speed limits and detect signs of drowsiness;

• or flashing lights on the T9 tram. From now on, bright flashes are used in addition to the driver’s bell or horn to grab the attention of other road users, particularly those distracted by their phones or music.

With the campaign ’Have we got your attention now?’, the Keolis Group reaffirms its commitment to playing a leading role in road safety in public spaces. This commitment to safety is developed through a shared sense of responsibility embraced by drivers and road users alike. Bus, coach and tram drivers, who receive regular training, remain constantly alert to the area around their vehicles, while alongside them, pedestrians, cyclists and motorists must show equal dedication to this collective effort.

The tone adopted for this campaign is deliberately responsible. The aim is to leave a lasting impression and instil a reflex of shared awareness. It is aimed at all road users crossing the path of public transport vehicles – pedestrians, cyclists and motorists -  as well as bus drivers – with a threefold objective:

• raise awareness of the genuine risks that exist around vehicles;

• remind people of the correct behaviours for sharing public spaces;

• increase collective vigilance. It also aims to support drivers, who are on the front line and directly impacted by these situations.

This initiative reflects a conviction shared by all three partners: road safety is a collective responsibility, involving every stakeholder in transport and every user of public space. Keolis sees this campaign as part of a broader approach, based on two principles: attention – which is put to the test by the demands of everyday life – and safety, as a collective responsibility shared by all road users.