Phuket vice governor leads youth road safety training for 83 students

Phuket Vice Governor Romdon opened and closed the second round of a youth road safety training programme at Phuket Technological College on Tuesday, with 83 students taking part in road safety education and practical motorcycle riding instruction.

The programme, titled the Youth Safe Driving Training Project to Enhance Traffic Discipline and Accident Prevention in Schools, was organised by the Phuket Provincial Road Safety Centre in cooperation with the Phuket Provincial Disaster Prevention and Mitigation Office and Phuket Technological College.

At the opening ceremony, Mr Romdon said Phuket continues to face serious road accident problems, especially motorcycle crashes involving children, teenagers and elderly people. He said many accidents were linked to riders not wearing helmets, speeding, careless driving and hazardous road conditions.

He said each accident affects not only victims but also their families, friends and society, adding that officials do not want such losses to happen to young people.

DDPM Phuket Chief Warat Surawadee said children and youth remain among the groups most at risk of road accidents in Phuket. He said the project aims to build what officials described as social immunity through active learning so that students develop safer attitudes and behaviour on the road.

The training included three main parts: traffic law and road sign lessons from Phuket City Police officers, the Traffic Vaccine 6 Modules programme on risk awareness, decision-making and stress management, and practical motorcycle riding skills taught by instructors from the Honda Safe Driving Training Centre Phuket.

Students also reviewed routes between their homes and school to identify possible dangers and improve awareness of risks they may face during daily travel.

At the closing ceremony, Mr Romdon presented certificates to all participants who completed the training. He described the programme as a form of traffic vaccine designed to give young people the knowledge, understanding and practical skills needed to lower their risk of road accidents.

He told students that knowing how to ride a motorcycle is not enough, and said they must ride correctly and safely, wear helmets at all times, follow traffic laws and stay within legal speed limits.

Mr Romdon also urged participants to apply what they learned in daily life and share the knowledge with family members and friends to help strengthen road safety culture across Phuket.

The second batch followed the first training session at Wichit Songkhram School on Monday, where 80 students joined road safety training overseen by Mr Romdon shortly after he took up his new role as Phuket vice governor. Officials said they hope the programme will improve traffic discipline among young people and contribute to a long-term reduction in crashes involving children and teenagers in Phuket.