More than 1,000 third-level students across Ireland, including students from University of Galway, engaged in a potentially lifesaving project as part of the Road Safety Reimagined initiative, highlighting the lifelong and potentially devastating impact of a moment’s distraction behind the wheel. 

Research from the Road Safety Authority (RSA) in 2023 found that nearly one in 10 Irish drivers have been caught using their phones while driving.  

In response, Road Safety Reimagined tasked students from University of Galway, University of Limerick, South East Technological University, Maynooth University and University College Cork to reimagine road safety through contemporary marketing concepts and develop solutions to positively impact driving behaviour. 

The initiative was led by University of Limerick and An Garda Síochána, with Garda Commissioner Drew Harris presented awards for the top entries from each participating university as well as the winners of the overall prize and special categories. 

The winning University of Galway entry centred on the tagline “SHOULD’VE stayed focused, WOULD’VE stayed safe, COULD’VE been avoided”, encouraging passengers to be a co-pilot and act responsibly to avoid distractions while travelling with a driver. 

Bearing the striking tagline ‘Worst passenger? Your phone’, the overall winning concept by UL students highlights the dangers of using a phone while driving, taking a driver’s eyes, hands and focus away from the road. 

Speaking at the event, Commissioner Drew Harris said: “Road Safety Reimagined provides a great opportunity for so many students to engage with such an important topic, and one which is so relevant to you all gathered here in this room.  

“It opens up conversations around road safety and helps us to reach those who often struggle to connect with this key message. Too often we see tragedy on the roads, and so, anything we can do to prevent this from happening An Garda Síochána is glad to support.  

“Engaging these talented young people in devising a marketing campaign around road safety which is aimed at their peers was a novel idea, and to see this initiative go from strength to strength is a credit to all those involved.  

“This work provides us with such valuable insights and showcases the great many creative and innovative ways we can connect with those most at risk on our roads.” 

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