How to run effective road safety awareness campaigns

Are road safety campaigns efficient means to improve road safety? 

To this question, we can answer positively and affirm that road safety campaigns are one tool used to enhance road safety, alongside measures like legislation, enforcement, education, driver training, and technical advancements. 

These campaigns aim to raise awareness and foster a long-term, voluntary shift in attitudes and behaviours related to road use. By informing, persuading, and motivating individuals to rethink their beliefs and actions, road safety campaigns contribute significantly to safer roads for everyone.

Key objectives of road safety campaigns

Road safety awareness campaigns typically focus on one or more of the following objectives:

  • Informing the public about new laws or changes to existing ones to ensure compliance and understanding (e.g. Educational campaign on the effects of reducing the speed limit to 80 km/h in France – 2018)
  • Increasing knowledge and awareness about risks, appropriate preventive behaviours, or innovations such as new driver assistance systems (e.g. Tyre safety campaign in Ireland – 2016).
  • Addressing underlying factors that influence driving behaviour, particularly social norms, such as attitudes toward drink driving (e.g. Bob campaign in Belgium, organized yearly since 1996).
  • Encouraging safer driving practices or reducing risky behaviours, such as speeding, to promote responsible road use (e.g. THINK! Speeding campaign in UK – 2024).
  • Reducing the frequency and severity of road crashes by fostering long-term changes in attitudes and behaviours (e.g. Programme Youthsafe in Australia – created in 1982). 

Steps to design road safety campaigns

For an awareness campaign to achieve its objectives, it must not only reach road users but also ensure its message is understood, considered, and acted upon. This makes the campaign's design and implementation critical to its success. Research indicates that road safety awareness campaigns are most effective when they follow the six steps outlined in the figure below.

Figure 1 Six steps to a successful road safety awareness campaign. Source: Delhomme et al., 2009 ; Projet européen CAST “Campaigns and Awareness Raising Strategies in Traffic Safety”).
Figure 1: Six steps to a successful road safety awareness campaign. Source: Delhomme et al., 2009 ; Projet européen CAST “Campaigns and Awareness Raising Strategies in Traffic Safety”.
  • Defining the problem and target group: Steps one and two in Figure 1 focus on clearly identifying the problem the campaign aims to address and determining the target audience(s). This process involves analysing a wide range of qualitative and quantitative data, either pre-existing or newly collected, to ensure a thorough understanding of the issue and the people affected by it.
  • Designing the campaign: Step three is dedicated to campaign design. This includes developing a clear strategy to influence the target audience effectively, crafting the content and tone of voice (what will be communicated, by whom, and how), and creating key messages. Additionally, a media plan is prepared to identify the most suitable channels for reaching the audience. This step also defines the campaign’s goals, logistics (when, where, and how it will run). For more tips on designing effective campaigns, click here and view the accompanying infographic.
  • Pre-testing the campaign: Before the campaign is officially launched, it is vital to conduct pre-testing. This step ensures the messages and methods resonate with the target audience and allows for adjustments to improve effectiveness.
  • Evaluation After Completion: Once the campaign concludes, evaluating its process, impact, and financial performance is essential. This step assesses whether the campaign achieved its objectives (effectiveness) and adhered to the budget (efficiency). It also allows for refining the campaign strategy, execution, and other elements for future efforts.
  • Creating a Final Report: A comprehensive final report should be produced, detailing the campaign’s goals, activities, results, and insights. This ensures a clear understanding of the campaign’s overall success and learnings.

Assessing effectiveness of road safety campaigns

Assessing the effectiveness of road safety campaigns and their contribution to improving road safety is a complex task. This is due to several factors, including the wide variety of campaigns conducted, the limited availability of evaluation reports, and the challenge of isolating the impact of campaigns from other initiatives, such as increased enforcement measures or stricter controls.

Despite the challenges, research demonstrates a statistical association between road safety awareness campaigns and a reduction in road crashes, with an estimated decrease of approximately 5–10%. Meta-analyses of road safety campaigns further reveal that their effectiveness varies significantly depending on the targeted driving behaviour (Theofilatos et al., 2017).

In addition to evaluating the impact of these campaigns, research highlights several factors that contribute to their success. Key elements include:

  • Evidence-based messaging: Campaigns grounded in relevant scientific research and theoretical models.
  • Contextual relevance: Tailoring messages to the specific social, cultural, and behavioural context.
  • Target audience identification: Ensuring the campaign is directed at the appropriate demographic(s).
  • Clear, credible, and persuasive messaging: Communicating a compelling message that resonates with the audience.

During implementation, combining campaigns with additional activities such as education, legislation, or enforcement significantly enhances their effectiveness. Campaigns achieve greater behavioural impact when integrated into broader strategies, such as increased police checks or comprehensive road safety programmes, compared to standalone efforts.

If you would like more information on running effective awareness campaigns, watch a recording of our recent webinar below.

We hope this article will help our members achieve greater success with their road safety awareness campaigns. You might want to also read our Five tips for an effective awareness campaign here. Also, for Safety equipment campaign success stories from across Europe click here