Faced with around 5,000 fatal road accidents a year on German roads plus more than 430,000 injured, the Federal Ministry of Transport, Building and Urban Affairs (BMVBS) and the German Road Safety Council e.V. (DVR) started a joint awareness campaign in March 2008, which will be running until the end of 2009.

Thanks to numerous successful public relations measures, nationwide billboard advertisements on motorways, printed ads, poster ads as well as TV, cinema and radio commercials, “Runter vom Gas!“ (“Slow Down!”) has a nationwide presence. The campaign is widely discussed on Internet discussion forums, in the media and among road users, road safety experts and those who are directly affected. Public awareness is being heightened by campaign themes and the comprehensive integration of many other people involved.

Thanks to its emotional tone of voice and images of the consequences of traffic accidents, “Runter vom Gas!“ has initiated a paradigm shift in road safety communications and successfully stimulated a public debate.

Communication occurs at two levels: addressing the public through a national communications campaign and involving institutions, experts and decision makers. The campaign was published at a press conference on 18th March 2008. It has been in the public eye ever since, thanks to media-effective PR measures such as a film competition, trade shows and political events, a press trip, celebrity endorsement and contacts with support groups. Relevant institutions and decision makers, such as federal level representatives, association members and those affected participate directly in the campaign’s preventative work. In addition to PR measures, the road users’ attention is drawn to the campaign message through nationwide motorway billboards. The first billboard series was displayed until January 2009 and attracted attention with fictitious obituaries, whereas now car and motorbike wrecks are being depicted. “Runter vom Gas!” gained further public attention with a TV and cinema commercial, radio features, a website campaign and advertising.

61% of Germans are aware of the campaign and 20% have discussed it with their family and friends. The results of a comprehensive survey make it plain: the goals of the campaign have been achieved. Awareness of the consequences of dangerous driving has been raised and a debate has been instigated throughout German society. Never before has a road safety campaign been the subject of such an intense, wide-ranging discussion. From relentless press promotion and motorway billboards through to challenging TV advertisements. The whole campaign was highly charged emotionally and led to intensive debates on Internet discussion forums, in the media (response: print 40 million; TV 34.25 million), among road users, road safety experts and victims.