Be visible on the road

In 2017, one of the most common variations of dramatic events on Polish roads was driving a vehicle on people moving on foot. There were 7911 such situations. It is curious to note that 13% of road accidents happened at pedestrian crossings, so in space, it would seem almost completely safe. The perpetrators of such accidents are generally reckless drivers who are unhappily breaking the speed limit order, lacking sensitivity to pedestrians, disregard not only road traffic regulations, but also the voice of common sense and suggestions suggested by the imagination. However, pedestrians are the victims of accidents also due to their own irresponsible behaviors, such as unexpectedly entering the road directly in front of a moving vehicle, crossing the road in unacceptable places, suddenly entering the road from behind a standing vehicle, attempting to cross a red light, absorbing other activities, like using Smartphone. Pedestrians are killed or seriously injured during the autumn and winter, when early darkness makes them, especially on unlit roadsides that are invisible to drivers. Accident victims are often children. In 2017, there were 2 822 road accidents with the participation of the youngest from zero to fourteen years old, the number of children who died in such tragic events is 56, while 3116 very young people suffered injuries.

Happy meetings on the road

The organizers of the spectacular educational and preventive action, co-financed by the Justice Fund, administered by the Ministry of Justice, paid particular attention to one of the factors generating a large number of road accidents in which the victims are mainly pedestrians (including children). This aspect is the degree of mutual self-perception of road users who interact with each other and can bring irreversible consequences. It's all about meeting on the way of driving a mechanized vehicle with a person moving on foot. The condition for a happy run and the finale of such a road meeting is uninterrupted communication between both entities. The term 'communication' in this case is synonymous with visibility: the pedestrian must see the approaching vehicle well in order to be able to behave adequately to the situation, while it is important for the driver to see a pedestrian in advance who goes by the side or intends to cross the road or also goes out from behind the car standing by the road. Minister of Justice Zbigniew, inaugurating on October 15, 2018, at Primary School Jana the action "Good to see you!", Expressed this truth as follows: "Safely it means evidently - someone who is visible on the road is much safer." One must realize that in difficult weather conditions, and especially after dark, a pedestrian with no reflective tapes is visible to the driver only from a distance of 20-30 meters. This is not much, considering the fact that a car traveling at 90 km / h overcomes in one second up to 25 meters, while its braking distance - the time elapsing from seeing a pedestrian by the driver to stopping the vehicle - amounts to as much as 57 meters (in the case of ice-cold is an even longer distance)! These imaginative numbers show that a pedestrian who suddenly appears in the driver's eyesight has little chance of avoiding an accident. Their significant increase is therefore related to making the pedestrian visible from a distance. This effect is ensured by reflective vests, which make the driver see the pedestrian already from a distance of 130-150 meters, so he has five times more time for reaction, as a result, the risk of deduction decreases seven times. Therefore, the central undertaking of the "Good to see you!" The campaign was the transfer of protective vests to three million primary schoolchildren across the country. Children also receive a "cheat sheet", informing about the seven basic rules of behavior on the road, to be visible to other users of the traffic.

Holistic campaign

The message of the campaign is not limited to instill in young people a useful habit of putting on reflective vests with reflective materials to make themselves visible. The series of the animated film features the attitudes of the strongly contrasted heroes - Sonia and Toni, and Jack and Wick. Sonia and Jack are children who are guided - on the road and in life - by prudence, mindfulness, responsibility for themselves and others, observing the rules and principles, open to the needs of others. However, their opposites - Toni and Wick - appear as constantly watching egocentrics on their Smartphone, ignoring rules, recklessly treating road and life risks. From the troubles, they fall into because of lack of reason, imagination, and mindfulness. They bring out their empathy Sonia and Jack.

"Good to see you" is a holistic campaign. Its purpose is not only to show the need to care for being perceived on the road but also to effectively make ourselves "well-seen" in the most varied situations that life brings with it.