Throwing stones at buses can have life-changing consequences – that’s the message behind a new educational film aimed at Dundee’s young people.
The city’s main bus operator, Xplore Dundee, has teamed up with Scottish Fire and Rescue, Police Scotland, the Scottish Ambulance Service and the Offsite Education Service to produce a DVD teaching kids about the potential dangers of stone-throwing.
The short film shows a double decker bus targeted by a youth who throws a brick at the vehicle, breaking the window and injuring passengers. The bus swerves towards a young mum pushing a buggy and the film doesn’t pull any punches when it comes to highlighting the damage done to human lives by this sort of anti-social behavior.
The content for the DVD was scripted, acted, filmed and edited by teachers and young people from Connect 5, with direction from managers from the bus company and emergency services.
Kevin Philip, community firefighter said, “We felt it was important to make the film as real as possible and that can only be achieved by involving the young people it affects. We wanted to show clearly the consequences of anti-social behavior for everyone involved – the passengers, driver, bystanders and also the person throwing the stone.
“Our scenario is hard-hitting, but it’s real – people are hurt when stones are thrown at buses – and that’s the key message we want to get across to Dundee’s young people.”
The DVD will be shown at secondary schools across the city. It’s hoped the educational program will help reduce incidents of anti-social behaviour and stone-throwing.
Jo Burnett, health and safety coordinator for Xplore Dundee, said, “Stone-throwing can cause immediate damage, to the bus and to the people inside who are hit by glass. But it has further-reaching consequences – the bus driver can be traumatized if there’s an accident, services are delayed, and it costs money to replace damage, which could be invested elsewhere.
“Not to mention the fact that young people caught throwing stones at our buses are brought to justice. We have a responsibility to our passengers to ensure that anyone found to be compromising safety on our services is stopped, and we work closely with Police Scotland to identify and prosecute offenders.”
