Clemenger BBDO Melbourne has joined forces with Victoria’s Accident Commission to encourage drivers to not knock cyclists over when they open their car door.
In creating The Rider Reminder, the duo hope to prompt drivers and passengers to be more careful in looking for cyclists before swinging their doors open.
Car dooring incidents, involving drivers and passengers opening their doors in front of approaching cyclists, have been blamed for two cyclist deaths and hundreds of injuries in Victoria in recent years.
The Rider Reminder is a textured device that drivers can stick on the inside of their car door handle, with the device designed to feel like a rubber bike handle in the hopes of acting as a trigger that reminds vehicle occupants to check for cyclists.
Tour de France winner Cadel Evans is backing the initiative, and said it would encourage Victorians to consider the risks to approaching cyclists before brashly throwing their car door open.
“It’s so easy for us to be in a rush and jump out of our car but at the same time, as a cyclist, the consequences are costly. A bike grip on the inside of your car door before you open the door is a good reminder,” Evans said.
Clemenger BBDO Melbourne behavioural planner Matt Peace said The Rider Reminder was one of the many innovations the agency was collaborating on with the TAC in order to change road user behaviour.
“In order to continue to reduce trauma on Victorian roads, and ultimately reach the goal of zero deaths and serious injuries, we need to find lots of different ‘nudges’ that help remind people of the role they can play in contributing to that goal,” Pearce said.
TAC senior road safety manager Samantha Cockfield said it was critical that the organisation continue to look for innovative solutions to road safety issues.
“Our goal is to raise awareness of the issue and give motorists and passengers a bit of a nudge at that crucial point before they step out of their vehicles,” Cockfield said.
“There are many different types of road users and we are constantly trying to find innovative ways of reminding people that they share the roads.”
The Rider Reminder is free and is now available in bike shops and selected cafes across Melbourne.
