The General Directorate of Traffic has praised Maersk Oil Qatar’s social investment road safety programme for helping reduce road accidents in the country.
More than 4,000 students attended road safety training in its state-of-the-art driving simulator and in schools and community events last year.
Brig Mohammed Saad al-Kharji, director, General Directorate of Traffic at the Ministry of the Interior, said: “The Students for Road Safety programme is a partnership between the General Directorate of Traffic and Maersk Oil Qatar. The past year has been the most successful to date for Students for Roads Safety. By working together to coach students on positive road behaviours, we are bringing tangible benefits to Qatar.”
Students for Road Safety falls under the national One Second road safety brand and seeks to transform 12 to 18 years old students into road safety ambassadors through interactive presentations and driving simulator training in schools and at community events.
In 2015, 1,400 students benefited from the programme through school visits and more than 2,600 were reached through community events arranged by the General Directorate of Traffic.
Sheikh Faisal bin Fahad al-Thani, deputy managing director of Maersk Oil Qatar, said: “Maersk is committed to Qatar for generations to come and there is no better example of this than Students for Road Safety, a programme that is affecting grassroots behaviour change among 12 to 18 years old in schools and at community events. Last year has been the programme’s most successful year so far.”
The driving simulator used in the Students for Road Safety programme features cutting-edge technology deployed in the Formula 1 and aviation industries, including a full real car cockpit, and an advanced display system with a wraparound screen. A custom-made traffic artificial intelligence engine reflects common behaviours on Qatar’s roads like tail-gating, failure to indicate, flashing lights and cutting across cars at roundabouts.