Skip to main content

Dynamic safe driving messages raise awareness

In a new effort to warn drivers to focus on the road, the Missouri Department of Transportation (MoDOT) is using its more than 250 dynamic message signs on interstates and major highways to send safety messages to drivers. The state says speeding, impaired driving, not wearing seatbelts and distracted driving are some of the leading causes of the 550 deaths to date in 2014. "Messages like ‘Put Down Your Phone and Drive, It Can Wait' or ‘Leave All Tailgating at the Game' are designed to raise awareness o
October 7, 2014 Read time: 2 mins
In a new effort to warn drivers to focus on the road, the 1773 Missouri Department of Transportation (MoDOT) is using its more than 250 dynamic message signs on interstates and major highways to send safety messages to drivers.  The state says speeding, impaired driving, not wearing seatbelts and distracted driving are some of the leading causes of the 550 deaths to date in 2014.

"Messages like ‘Put Down Your Phone and Drive, It Can Wait' or ‘Leave All Tailgating at the Game' are designed to raise awareness of these driving behaviour," said MoDOT Traffic management and operations engineer Jon Nelson. "Driving is a serious task that demands your attention. We hope our sometimes humorous and interesting messages will remind drivers to refocus on the task at hand."

Messages are changed each month and focus on seasonal issues or safety enforcement campaigns.  October messages include "Unbuckled? Seriously", "One Text or Call Could Wreck It All, It Can Wait", "If You Can't See Trucks Mirrors, They Can't See You", and "Drinking and Driving Don't Mix."

"The primary purpose of the dynamic message signs is to share incident and work zone information to motorists," said Nelson. "When we don't have these incidents, we are using the message signs to share driving safety information instead of just leaving them blank."

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Dutch survey shows drivers are in favour of road user charging
    January 16, 2012
    'Keep it simple, stupid' is an oft-forgotten axiom but in terms of road user charging it is entirely appropriate. So says the ANWB's Ferry Smith. A couple of decades ago, it might have been largely true that the technology aspects of advanced road infrastructure were the main obstacles to deployment. However, 20 years or more of development have led to a situation where such 'obstacles' are often no more than a political fig-leaf. Area-wide Road User Charging (RUC) is a case in point; speak candidly to syst
  • Smartphone apps creating more distraction for young drivers
    April 30, 2012
    Recent survey findings from Ingenie, a UK car insurance brand for young drivers, have revealed that 58 per cent of 17-25 year old drivers agree that smartphone apps are causing young people to be more distracted at the wheel. The company commissioned the survey of 1,000 young drivers, conducted by One Poll, which has uncovered the extent of how smartphones and social media are distracting 17-25 year olds when behind the wheel.
  • Data provides structural support for BQE
    July 28, 2025
    Thousands of bridges in the US are ageing and in need of care and attention. Kistler explains how its WiM technology is helping to preserve New York’s famous Brooklyn-Queens Expressway…
  • Tackling speed enforcement with electronic vehicle recognition
    July 4, 2012
    An innovative electronic vehicle registration system is being rolled out across Bangkok in Thailand, with road safety and speed enforcement the principal aims Equipment contracts and partnerships relating to a system of electronic vehicle registration (EVR) have been forming in Bangkok over the past couple of years. EVR can be applied to tackle a broad range of problems for transport authorities, including tax evasion, crime and insurance fraud. For Thailand’s Department of Land Transport (DLT), its EVR sy