Abstract

Road traffic crashes are a leading cause of death among children. In Thailand 2600 children killed and 72 000 injured every year in road crashes. AIP Foundation, supported by Chevron Thailand, developed and implemented the Street Wise project from 2014 to 2017 to focus on road safety education for primary school students in 11 primary schools in Songkla Province, Thailand. A project baseline assessment found that the level of road safety education and awareness of the students was low, for example, only 3% of the students wore helmets. During a six-month period, a quarter of the students experienced a crash, almost half of which occurred with motorbikes. A quarter of the crashes resulted in hospitals visits. The project addressed road safety through education, awareness building, and community and stakeholder engagement. Syllabuses and materials were developed for primary school levels and for master trainer courses to build capacity of teachers, educational staff, parents and police officers. Extracurricular activities, ceremonies, meetings, and workshops reinforcing safety messages and engaging parents, and community stakeholders were regularly hosted. Over three years, 260 teachers were trained through master trainer courses, over 4600 parents were trained, and helmet was provided to 3000 students. And 235 students were developed as ‘road safety ambassadors’ to spearhead school and community campaigns. The project’s effectiveness was measured through innovative helmet observations developed with support from the U.S. Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, as well as in-depth interviews, focus groups, and student knowledge surveys. It was found that student helmet use increased from 3% to 55%. The observed behaviours and tested knowledge in crosswalk, sidewalk and street usage were improved dramatically. In summary, the Street Wise’s combined efforts and engagements have resulted in improved students’ road safety behaviours and knowledge across various indicators.