An Auckland Transport campaign is putting Māori at the forefront when it comes to safety on the roads these Summer holidays.
Despite a quirky approach, the online clips covey some very serious road safety messages.
Auckland Transport Te Ara Haepapa campaign co-ordinator Marutawhao Delamere says, "Māori, in our nature, are humorous people so the humour actually sends the message across."
But the statistics aren't so funny. In the five years leading up to 2016, Māori accounted for 11 percent of the total death and serious injury (DSI) rates within the Auckland region.
Auckland Transport Te Ara Haepapa campaign co-ordinator Rachel Elisaia-Hopa says, "Māori have the highest death and serious injury rates in Tāmaki Makaurau across all age groups but the highest risk age groups are our 16-24-year-olds, our rangatahi."
The Te Ara Haepapa campaign is making a comeback for the summer. After the campaign launched in July, the quirky clips promoting messages around seatbelts, driving to the conditions and sober driving reached 1.7 million views online.
Elisaia-Hopa says, "We look at Billy T. James and the humour he brought across. The videos we know have gone international, we’ve had feedback from as far as England and Canada about how amazing these clips are."
The campaign will relaunch across online and social platforms from December 28th to February 1st.