Background
Many migrant workers from rural China are not used to busy traffic in the larger cities where pedestrian deaths on the roads have been escalating. In 2010, over 26,000 pedestrians were killed in traffic accidents alone.
Objective
The Beijing Tongzou District Zhangjiawan Traffic Safety Commission tasked Y&R China to come up with an eye-catching and impactful scheme which would raise awareness of the issue with pedestrians and help cut the number of deaths on the roads.
Execution
The resulting campaign, ‘Dead man walking’ saw a series of figures, reminiscent of the outline chalked around a corpse, installed on one of the busiest roads in Beijing.
The ‘walking corpses’ appeared at the most dangerous crossing points and carried a compelling message, which directed pedestrians to a safer place. The figures were also coated in fluorescent paint so they could be visible at night.
Results
Since the installation, there have been no pedestrian accidents reported on this particular stretch of road, one of Beijing’s busiest. The installations for this campaign went up in March and are now permanent fixtures on the road.
This simple yet powerful installation made the front page of the Beijing Morning News and was also reported in other Beijing newspapers, Beijing Traffic Radio and on many popular websites in China.
“The ‘walking corpses’ graphically illustrate the consequences of trying to cross a busy road without due care,” Nils Andersson, CCO Y&R China said. “To have the installations permanently erected is tantamount to their effectiveness at curbing these fatalities and we’re very proud of that achievement.”
Credits:
Campaign name 'Dead man walking' road safety pilot campaign
Agency Y&R China
CCO/ copywriter Nils Andersson
ECD Gunny Park
CD/ Art director Chen Lei
ACD/ copywriter Ma Ken
Art director Shi Jian
Copywriter Gao Han
Photographer Wang Qiang/Gao Fan
Retouching Quan Zhenguo
Exposure OOH, ambient
