A mysterious bearded man in a dark suit sits on a chair alongside an intersection and spins the wheel of misfortune. What will it be? Minor crash, major crash, near miss or death?
We've seen the television advertisements, now the Rotorua District Council is looking for its own grim wheel spinner
to get the road safety message across.
Council road safety co-ordinator, Jodie Lawson, is on the lookout for someone resembling actor David Austin, who features in the New Zealand Transport Agency television commercials.
She wants to pay someone to sit alongside a wheel during the Staying Alive Expo at Rotorua's Village Green in October. The free expo showcases organisations involved in safety, emergency services, health and well-being.
Mrs Lawson needs someone for five days to work as part of local promotion for the national intersection education campaign.
"We're pretty sure the grim man sitting at an intersection with a big spinning wheel will attract a lot of attention and help get the road safety message across," she said. "He'll be portraying an important message - failure to give way at intersections is a serious road safety issue."
Mrs Lawson said each year about 2500 crashes occurred at intersections on New Zealand roads because someone failed to stop or give way.
The person who is selected to spin the wheel will be stationed at a mock intersection crash at the Staying Alive Expo. "That person would have to be pretty calm and be able not to react to people," she said.
Call Jodie Lawson on (07) 348 4199.
