Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT): advert-body-2 by Amélie Company

In 2016, the Colorado Department of Transportation and Amélie created the ultimate pedestrian safety advocate: Fred Estrian. Fred, whose name is a play on the word 'pedestrian,' is a life-size walk signal man with a passion for protecting Colorado road users. With 93 pedestrian fatalities in 2017 – and more pedestrians and cars moving here every day – we sought out to engage with pedestrians and drivers alike on the importance of using crosswalks and observing pedestrian laws.

Since Fred is a familiar face around Colorado, we decided to bring him back to town just as temperatures started to rise and more pedestrians were out and about. This year, he transformed into 'Captain Fred Estrian,' a spoof on an airline captain, to share information in a common safety communications format. We created Fred’s guidelines in the form of radio PSAs, social media advertisements and billboards. Radio spots imitated pre-flight safety demonstrations, while print and social media ads aimed to emulate airplane safety manuals.

We also installed glow in the dark sidewalk chalk art that read 'Stow your phone before crossing' in 100 locations within Denver’s city limits to reach pedestrians as they were preparing to cross busy intersections. The goal? To engage with road users where they spend most of their time – online, outside and in their cars. The campaign caught the attention of Coloradans, garnering media coverage from Denver to Durango, and ultimately reminding road users that crosswalks play a critical role in preventing pedestrian fatalities.