Jakarta. Astra Honda Motor Foundation, the corporate social responsibility division of the motorcycle manufacturer, is nurturing youth representatives that can help raise public awareness of putting safety first in bike riding.

Also known as Yayasan AHM, the foundation recently took 45 students from five high schools to a training camp where they learned the ropes of becoming a safety riding ambassador. The four-day long camp took place at AHM’s learning center in Cikarang, West Java, in late 2022.

These youth ambassadors will promote, among others, the importance of abiding by traffic laws, and wearing safety gear, while also making sure the motorcycle is in good condition. 

According to a press release, Astra Honda Motor assigned its safety riding instructors to teach the participants basic motorcycle riding skills such as braking, cornering, and balancing techniques. The camp training encompassed the know-how on observing the traffic, the surroundings, and other drivers, as well as the traffic law and road signs. Participants learned how to recognize road hazards, among others, through the Honda Riding Trainer (HRT) motorcycle simulator.

The camp also taught participants skills that could make them better safety ridings ambassadors, such as photography, videography, and public speaking, as well as knowledge of Honda motorcycles’ safety features. 

 “Our main goal of the 2022 Safety Riding Camp is to teach the participants how to think critically while driving so they can recognize any potential road hazards,” the AHM Foundation chief Ahmad Muhibbuddin was quoted as saying in a recent press statement.

“So as a safety riding ambassador, they can teach these things to their friends, family, and the community in a unique and creative way that is unique to their respective regions,” Muhibbuddin said.

AHM Foundation reported that the safety riding ambassadors had educated more than 8,500 productive-age people throughout 2022. The ambassadors embraced a local wisdom approach, while also using more familiar terms to disseminate the message to school-age children and the general public. They also used both virtual and offline means to promote the safety riding campaign.

Safety Riding Lab

According to the press release, AHM Foundation is also working alongside its Honda motorcycle main dealers and partnered schools to set up safety riding labs. The Astra Honda safety riding labs are now at five vocational schools, namely SMK Mitra Industri MM2100 (Cikarang),  SMK Walisongo Menes (Pandeglang, Banten), SMK PABA (Binjai, North Sumatera), SMK Muhammadiyah 1 Kepanjen (Malang, East Java), and SMAN Bali Mandara (Bali).

As the name suggests, the labs become a training ground for safe riding and come equipped with audio-visual zones, simulation zones, and practice zones, as well as various teaching materials on road ethics, driving skills, and the use of social media. 

AHM Foundation also wrote that it had built two road safety facilities dedicated to children, among others, the road ethics zone at the science-themed park Taman Pintar Yogyakarta. The foundation has set up a children’s traffic park that teaches road safety in Kalihurip village in West Java.

AHM Foundation works alongside other parties to hold the Gen Z: Ride for Life competition that invites youth to make creative safety riding campaigns.