Dumb Ways To Die Goes Large With New US Campaign

Following on from the huge success of the singing, dancing characters dying in dumb ways, Metro Trains Melbourne has kicked off its inaugural ‘Dumb Ways to Die’ safety campaign by the Regional Transporation District (RTD) in the States.

RTD has injected new life into the internationally-acclaimed Melbourne train safety campaign to spread the word about safety for bus customers in Denver, Colorado.

RTD approached MTM last year to license the ‘Dumb Ways to Die’ safety champions’ campaign as the authority prepared to expand its network in the metropolitan Denver region.

In case your memory is failing you, here’s the masterpiece from way back when:

RTD’s interim general manager and CEO Dave Genova said the authority was proud to be the first public transport operator in the US to license the ‘Dumb Ways to Die’ campaign, which will target its bus and train passengers as well as the kids through a new education program.

“Safety is RTD’s number 1 priority, and we have an excellent safety record that we want to maintain in the upcoming year with the expansion of our bus and rail service,” he said.

“The Dumb Ways to Die campaign has proven to be wildly popular and effective in Melbourne and we plan to use it here in Denver metro area to bring the serious message of being safe around buses and trains to a wider audience through humour and animation.”

The RTD branded, ‘Dumb Ways to Die – Take the safety pledge – be safe around buses and trains’ will be rolled out from 21 January and include education resources for school children, a promotional awareness campaign that will feature on bus and trains, and a dedicated digital interface with the Denver public, including Facebook and Twitter.

MTM’s chief corporate relations and business development officer, Leah Waymark explained the opportunity to licence the successful ‘Dumb Ways to Die’ campaign in the United States demonstrates that no matter where you live, safety around public transport is a universal challenge.

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“Too often we see people take risks and do dumb things around trains, right around the world. Our campaign evolved in 2012 out of a discussion with platform staff and drivers who witness people risking their safety around train stations and at level crossings. We wanted to teach people about the importance of rail safety and the very real consequences of taking a risk to save a few minutes,” she said.

“Education made entertaining and in particular, educating young people about being safe around trains (as well as buses and anything else) in a style and language young people will engage with is at the core of what this campaign is about.

“We are thrilled to be partnering with our public transport counterparts in Denver and look forward to developing some new creative to help target specific challenges on the RTD network. Watch this space.”

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