Virtual reality builds empathy between road users

Overview

Action 3.2: Investigate opportunities to partner with industry associations to promote benefits of bicycle riding to their members and how to share our roads with bicycle riders.

Lead agency: Department of Transport and Main Roads

Status: Complete

Achievements

We supported Bicycle Queensland to design and deliver a series of 3D virtual reality animations of road traffic scenarios focusing on interactions between bicycle riders and truck drivers. The animations allow viewers to experience the three scenarios from different perspectives, as a tool to build empathy and understand other's perspectives.

Bicycle Queensland worked with the Centre for Accident Research and Road Safety - Queensland (CARRS-Q) and the Department of Transport and Main Roads' Heavy Vehicle and Road Safety teams to develop the virtual reality education experience.

The experience was launched at the CARRS-Q 25th birthday event in July 2022 and taken on the road to regional Queensland in October 2022. 

More than 100 road users (including bicycle riders and heavy vehicle operators) and planners from Cairns, Townsville, Rockhampton and Innisfail participated in the experience between July and November 2022. 

Bicycle Queensland also showcased the experience at the 2022 Local Government Association of Queensland Annual Conference in Cairns.

Next steps

We will continue to work with Bicycle Queensland to identify opportunities to deliver the experience across the state.