IIT Madras, Ford join hands to train next generation of young drivers, to educate students on road safety
Through the collaboration, thousands of students from 240 Tamil Nadu schools will be equipped with essential road safety skills through master trainers.
Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras’ Center of Excellence for Road Safety (CoERS) has joined hands with Ford to launch an initiative aimed at training the next generation of drivers. The move comes to address the growing concern of road accidents involving young drivers.
A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed by CoERS and Ford in this regard at the IIT Madras campus on August 30, 2024.
As part of the initiative, thousands of students from 240 schools in Tamil Nadu will be equipped with essential road safety knowledge and skills through master trainers. It will focus on practical training, emphasizing responsible driving on the roads.
Additionally, individuals trained through the program will impart further training programs in their respective schools and traffic jurisdictions creating multiplier effects on driving practices, traffic rules, and hazard awareness, states a press release.
Capacity-building training sessions will also be conducted for teachers, traffic wardens, and traffic police personnel on road safety from human behaviour perspectives.
The release added that by investing in the education of young drivers, CoERS and Ford aim to reduce accidents and create a safer future for all road users.
Highlighting the initiative, IIT Madras Director Prof. V Kamakoti stated that engaging the younger generation in the initiative is crucial for fostering a culture of safety on the roads.
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“We have previously worked on improving driver behavior, and through this initiative, we aim to sensitize the younger generation—the drivers of tomorrow—towards safer driving practices,” Prof Kamakoti added.
Prof. Venkatesh Balasubramanian, Head of CoERS, and RBG Labs, Department of Engineering Design at IIT Madras emphasised that early exposure to road safety procedures is essential for preparing young brains and fostering behavioral changes that will enable them to drive safely.
Sreenivasan Janakiraman, the CSR Head of Ford spoke on the collaboration and said that the focus is on empowering educators to foster a culture of road safety, thereby ensuring that the students and the young riders are equipped with the knowledge and skills to navigate the roads safely.
“This collaboration with CoERS, IIT Madras to inculcate Activity Based Learning Pedagogy helps nurture the next generation of safe drivers,” Janakiraman said.
It may be mentioned here that as many as 42,878 out of a total of 1,68,491 fatal road accident victims in the year 2022 were under 25 years old as per a report on ‘Road Accidents in India 2022’ by the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH).
