Re:act TAFE fatigue creative campaigns launch nationally on Out of Home and Online

Road safety campaigns focused on driver fatigue, each devised by local TAFE students, are launching across more than 750 media assets in each corner of Australia to change behaviour among young drivers and apprentices.

In a coordinated display, peak hour drivers in Western Australia, Victoria and Queensland were greeted with the road safety campaigns this morning. The campaigns, which will run for the next two weeks on OOH and four weeks online, were devised by TAFE graphic design students as part of the Re:act TAFE road safety behaviour change program.

An initiative of strategic creative behaviour change agency Hard Edge, Re:act TAFE challenges graphic design students to create a campaign that raises awareness among 16-24 year old road users of a critical road safety issue. The selected campaign is developed for public execution via media partner oOh!media’s national network of digital assets, including on TAFE campuses and in regional areas.

Re:act has run in 2021 at Holmesglen TAFE in Melbourne, North Metropolitan TAFE in Perth and Queensland TAFE on the Gold Coast. Students at TAFE NSW are currently participating in the program with South Australia’s launch date yet to be announced, giving Re:act a virtually national scope.

The program also runs in the university sector, through University of Technology Sydney, Curtin University in Perth, Swinburne University in Melbourne and Queensland University of Technology, as well as in the United Kingdom through University of the Arts London.

“Bringing together road and work safe agencies to collaborate on road trauma, a major issue for both, is fantastic and we hope that collaboration will continue past Re:act TAFE,” said, Re:act and Hard Edge Founder Andrew Hardwick.

“We are immensely grateful to the Road Safety Commission and Worksafe WA for their strong support to get Re:act TAFE off the ground this year, which is testament of their commitment to those they represent.

“All participating students have conducted research with young people and with apprentices specifically that, once compiled, we believe will be a useful insight for the agencies into this hard to reach and understand demographic, which is over-represented in road trauma.”

Western Australia’s Road Safety Minister Paul Papalia said the road safety campaigns developed through the Re:act project had been a great initiative.

“Young people are often those who are most at risk in terms of unsafe driving behaviours, so it makes sense for them to be the creative talent when it comes to delivering messages that improve road safety.

“Fatigue continues to be a major contributor in fatal and serious crashes on our roads. Stephanie Simpson’s work shines a light on this, by highlighting the dangers of driving tired.

“Don’t just grab a coffee, but plan your journey to include plenty of rest stops, get out of the car and stretch your legs.

“My thanks to all the students involved in the project.”

Iain Dainty, Director Worksafe Industrial and Regional, said: “In the work place, fatigue can lead to lack of concentration and result in serious incidents, particularly among young or inexperienced workers.

“Similarly, fatigue-induced lack of concentration while driving can have tragic consequences such as serious injuries or even deaths. Take time to rest properly.”

Noel Cook, oOh!media’s Chief Commercial & Operations Officer, said: “Saving young lives on our roads is critically important, which is why we are pleased to support these campaigns and contribute resources and signage space to get the message out there.

“The students have done a great job creatively highlighting the dangers of fatigue, using eye-catching messaging and visuals ideally suited to the Out of Home format – this will definitely resonate with drivers across the country.”