Lucy Pinder Urges Young Males: ‘Don’t Run The Risk’
- By Alun Hill MCIJ
- Published Tuesday 28th 2007
Awareness Campaign Highlights Dangers of Level Crossing Misuse
Glamour model Lucy Pinder is featuring in an online viral music video to launch a level crossing awareness campaign to 18 to 24 year old males. The viral, launched today, is part of the Don’t Run The Risk campaign by Network Rail, and is the first time that the rail infrastructure operator has used an edgy and hard-hitting viral film in this way.
Don’t Run The Risk aims to educate people on the dangers of misusing level crossings and the production is specifically designed to resonate with young males, where the shocking ending is intended to bring home the dangers of running the risk at level crossings.
Filmed in the style of a cutting edge music video for fictional ‘DJ Riskee’, the 60 second viral follows a young man who receives a flirtatious videotext message from gorgeous Lucy Pinder. The DJ Riskee video takes him through a journey that comes to a sudden, startling end.
The viral is only one part of the public safety campaign, now in its second year, in which Network Rail aims to further increase awareness and reduce the number of incidents at level crossings. The overall campaign focuses on two key target groups; the over 65s and males aged 18-24, which are the two groups identified as most at risk, and includes a wide range of media channels including TV, radio and press advertising, direct marketing and online.
The campaign also specifically targets ‘hotspot’ regions that have been identified through the analysis of level crossing accident data. The communication to the over 65s focuses on these ‘hotspot’ regions with emotive local press advertising, door drops and activity at local community hubs such as post offices, community centres and places of worship.
Mark Shaoul, Head of Marketing, Network Rail
“Last year’s campaign had a noticeable effect on recorded incidents at our level cro
ssings, which are one of the key safety
points on the rail infrastructure. This year we have taken the campaign
a step further, using data to identify specific level crossings for
heavy weight local community activity. We’ve also stepped into
new territory with a viral designed to reach those elusive 18-24 year
old male drivers.
All in all, our message is clear, if you run the risk at a level crossing, your chances of surviving if hit by a train is virtually zero”
Lucy Pinder, Glamour Model
“I’m really pleased to be involved with the Don’t Run The Risk campaign this year. The fact that people misuse level crossings and ignore warning signs is really surprising to me, especially when the consequences are so clear. This kind of campaign is really important to highlight the dangers of taking life-threatening risks to young men.”
The work on the campaign is running in parallel with other Network Rail and industry initiatives to minimise the safety risk at level crossings. These include:
• Development of solutions which could lead to the replacement of some crossings
• Development of obstacle detection systems
• Development of lower cost level crossing systems
• Developing better and cost-effective ways of detecting and recording level crossings misuse
• Working with the Police and Crown Prosecution Service to improve the prosecution of offenders
• Highlighting the issues of level crossings to key political stakeholders
See the viral at: www.myspace.com/watchrush or here:
Glamour model Lucy Pinder is featuring in an online viral music video to launch a level crossing awareness campaign to 18 to 24 year old males. The viral, launched today, is part of the Don’t Run The Risk campaign by Network Rail, and is the first time that the rail infrastructure operator has used an edgy and hard-hitting viral film in this way.
Don’t Run The Risk aims to educate people on the dangers of misusing level crossings and the production is specifically designed to resonate with young males, where the shocking ending is intended to bring home the dangers of running the risk at level crossings.
Filmed in the style of a cutting edge music video for fictional ‘DJ Riskee’, the 60 second viral follows a young man who receives a flirtatious videotext message from gorgeous Lucy Pinder. The DJ Riskee video takes him through a journey that comes to a sudden, startling end.
The viral is only one part of the public safety campaign, now in its second year, in which Network Rail aims to further increase awareness and reduce the number of incidents at level crossings. The overall campaign focuses on two key target groups; the over 65s and males aged 18-24, which are the two groups identified as most at risk, and includes a wide range of media channels including TV, radio and press advertising, direct marketing and online.
The campaign also specifically targets ‘hotspot’ regions that have been identified through the analysis of level crossing accident data. The communication to the over 65s focuses on these ‘hotspot’ regions with emotive local press advertising, door drops and activity at local community hubs such as post offices, community centres and places of worship.
Mark Shaoul, Head of Marketing, Network Rail
“Last year’s campaign had a noticeable effect on recorded incidents at our level cro
All in all, our message is clear, if you run the risk at a level crossing, your chances of surviving if hit by a train is virtually zero”
Lucy Pinder, Glamour Model
“I’m really pleased to be involved with the Don’t Run The Risk campaign this year. The fact that people misuse level crossings and ignore warning signs is really surprising to me, especially when the consequences are so clear. This kind of campaign is really important to highlight the dangers of taking life-threatening risks to young men.”
The work on the campaign is running in parallel with other Network Rail and industry initiatives to minimise the safety risk at level crossings. These include:
• Development of solutions which could lead to the replacement of some crossings
• Development of obstacle detection systems
• Development of lower cost level crossing systems
• Developing better and cost-effective ways of detecting and recording level crossings misuse
• Working with the Police and Crown Prosecution Service to improve the prosecution of offenders
• Highlighting the issues of level crossings to key political stakeholders
See the viral at: www.myspace.com/watchrush or here:
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2 Responses to "Lucy Pinder Urges Young Males: ‘Don’t Run The Risk’" 
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said this on 06 Sep 2007 10:48:07 AM CDT
It seems a sad state of affairs when people have to be warned not to drive accross level crossings. But then again, we shouldn't have to warn people not to walk on rail tracks either. Perhaps these people are best removed from the human race for their complete and utter stupidity?
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said this on 07 Sep 2007 2:21:42 PM CDT
I can't agree with the Darwinian option :-)
The biggest cause of death on the railways is level crossing accidents. The biggest cause of level crossing accidents by a long way is user stupidity. Since it is in effect a software problem, software fixes - trying to eliminate the stupidity - are a far more effective solution than hardware fixes - modifying level crossings. This campaign will save more lives than any programme of level crossing modifications. And it is of immediate effect whereas modifications take years. We need more of this.
Furthermore, while level crossing modifications might seem to the general public to be the obvious solution, unless you go to the lengths of replacing them with bridges it is difficult to have any significant effect. Let us not forget that when half-barrier crossings were first introduced, in France, in place of fully gated crossings, the accident rate went *down*. The crossing depicted in the video is probably already in its safest possible form; to replace it with the apparently safer fully-gated variety would probably result in more accidents from people being trapped between the gates than occur at the half-barrier version from people dodging the barriers. The hardware option may simply not exist.
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