THUNDER BAY – Hit the brakes! Synergy North is urging local motorists to practice cautious driving when going through worksites.
The Hit the Brakes! Not Us campaign is an effort by Synergy North to better protect its crews as they work around the city. Drivers are reminded to slow down and pay attention when driving through work sites, especially when workers are present.
This year’s campaign is a little different from previous years according to Amy Kembel, interim vice president, human resources and safety & corporate risk. She said that Synergy North believes every worker deserves to go home safe at the end of the work day.
“What's new this year with the campaign is a video element and the video is designed to show the perspective of what it's like to work in traffic, often traffic that's moving at really high speeds or with distracted drivers,” she said.
“The other component is Synergy North has a pit crew this year. So, we're going to be out in the community trying to reinforce this message with the public.”
Kembel said that the company originally started the campaign after hearing concerns from road workers.
“It came actually from our staff sharing incidents that were happening, near hits out in the community where sometimes all that's separating them from the traffic is a pylon,” she said.
“Unfortunately, we can't control the drivers, but we can educate them and we can try to share the perspective that it's really important, that this is somebody's workplace. When they see these signs, they recognize that they need to slow down, that somebody's working here."
More information about the Hit the Brakes Not Us program can be found on Synergy North's Facebook page.
