The Department of Transport and Public Works Road Safety Management unit educates learners about road safety through a number of innovative projects and programmes. We encourage learners to adopt positive road safety habits from an early age. Our customised interventions target the needs and interests of specific age groups.
The following programmes are aimed at school-going children and youth:
- Participatory Education Techniques (PET)
- Annual high school debate competition
- Scholar patrol training
- Danny Cat road safety education
- Long Short Walk
Participatory Education Techniques (PET)
The PET competition challenges learners from Grade 10 and 11 to identify road safety problems in their communities and to find research-based solutions. Judges score competing schools on the quality of their models (displays) and their presentations on research-based solutions to road safety problems in their communities.
Read more about the PET competition
Annual high school debate competition
The Road Traffic Management Corporation (RTMC) started this project in 2003 to instil a culture of practical road safety among young pedestrians, cyclists, motorcyclists, novice drivers and passengers. This high school debating competition across provinces uses the World School Style (WSS) debate format. The five best participants from competing schools represent the Western Cape at the National Road Safety Debate Competition every year.
- Read more about the 2016 debate competition.
Scholar patrol training
Road safety officers train primary school learners how to display a road sign in the prescribed manner so that pedestrians can cross a public street or road safely.
Scholar patrol officers:
- regulate traffic,
- slow down vehicles,
- facilitate safe crossing and
- instil awareness among young pedestrians on the importance of road safety.
Read more about how the scholar patrol works.
Danny Cat road safety education
Danny Cat was created with young children in mind. Our target audience is learners between Grade R and Grade 3. Danny Cat is also available to visit younger children at pre-schools. A visit by Danny Cat adds an element of excitement to the learning experience while creating awareness about road safety among young children.
- Read more about Danny Cat in the September 2014 issue of On Track (page 16).
Long Short Walk
This programme is a partnership with the Western Cape Education Department that is aimed at making the areas around schools, particularly primary schools, safer for children who walk to and from school daily.
- Read more about the Long Short Walk campaign.
Watch: Let's teach our children about road safety
Read more about road safety in the Western Cape