Youth, risk, and the road: Insights from a university road safety intervention program

Abstract Background Road traffic incidents in Crete, Greece, have reached their highest level in the past five years, highlighting the urgent need for road safety education and the promotion of a traffic safety culture from an early age. Methods A brief road safety education program is offered to primary and secondary school students at the Lab of Health and Road Safety (LaHeRS) of the Hellenic Mediterranean University. The program includes hands-on training with a driving simulator (Virage VS500Μ) and interactive activities focused on road risk perception. To assess students’ commuting experiences, attitudes, and behaviors, selected questions from the Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) were applied, along with a structured questionnaire. Results From October 2024 to early April 2025, a total of 607 secondary students attended the program from the broader Crete region. 54.5% were boys, with a mean age of 14.1 years (range: 12-19, SD = 1.3), 38.6% lived in urban areas and 61.4% from rural or semi-rural settings. Among the participants, 24.2% reported involvement in a road traffic incident in the past 6 months, and 7.1% had experienced a road traffic injury. Nearly 24% reported riding a moped and around 26.5% occasionally drove a car without a license, with approximately 12% in both cases reporting regular unlicensed driving. Seatbelt use was low, with 53.8% not consistently wearing one as car passengers while 38.8% of participants reported being passengers in a vehicle driven by someone under the influence of alcohol in the past 30 days. Students from rural areas appeared more likely to engage in risky commuting behaviors (e.g. mobile phone use, drinking) as compared to their counterparts from urban settings (p<.05). Conclusions Targeted, evidence-based interventions aimed at young road users, particularly in rural settings, are essential to mitigate risky commuting behaviors and improve road safety awareness. Key messages • Road safety education is essential in shaping safer attitudes and behaviors among youth. • Unlicensed driving, alcohol use and low use of protective equipment in rural areas is frequent and needs attention in road safety policies.