New formats of sober driving education have been proposed in Russia

The total media coverage of the All-Russian "Responsibility" project, which promotes a culture of sober driving, has exceeded 201 million people. The project worked with the audience through VR simulators, educational modules in driving schools, and digital formats, the authors said.

The Responsibility project was launched in October 2025. It is implemented by the Beverages Together company (AB InBev Efes JSC) with the consulting support of the State Traffic Inspectorate of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia, the BDD Scientific Center, the Ministry of Education, DOSAAF, and Avtodor Group of Companies.

Stanislav Kaplan, Executive Director of Beverages Together, emphasized that the approach is based on the idea of corporate responsibility. According to him, the principle of "Drunk — don't drive" is the same standard for the company as quality control in production. According to the authors of the project, the initiative's goal is not only to prevent violations, but also to form the habit of not driving after drinking alcohol.

The project is structured in two directions. The first one — "Your measure is 0 ppm" — is focused on the formation of a stable rejection of driving under the influence. The second one, "You need to know the measure", is addressed to a wider audience and is related to the culture of responsible alcohol consumption in general.

As part of the first track of the project, its authors relied on practical experience, of which VR training became a part. In 2025, more than 51,000 people were trained on simulators that show the effect of alcohol on driver reactions. The simulators worked in shopping malls and driving schools in 11 regions. In addition, more than 1,000 cadets of driving schools have completed special educational modules prepared with the participation of experts. An art and educational film was also created for the project, and a series of murals reminding of the consequences of risky behavior was prepared on federal highways by the beginning of the summer.

The second direction, "You need to know the measure," works with a youth audience through digital and media formats. His face has become the virtual heroine Mera, who communicates with users in the style of blogs. The character's image is used in information materials at points of sale and in a number of large media projects. In addition, the campaign has been integrated into collaborations with Delimobil carsharing.

During the three months of operation, the project's digital ecosystem has shown significant audience engagement, the initiators note. So, the telegram channel of the virtual heroine of the Measure gathered 5 thousand active subscribers, the chatbot recorded more than 12 thousand dialogues. The project's website was visited by 4,500 unique users who passed the tests.

Special attention in the project is paid to cooperation with relevant departments. Joint work with the State Traffic Inspectorate and scientific structures allowed the development of scenarios for simulators and educational modules. After the completion of the main stage, the project will continue to operate in the format of a website with useful information and tests. Further, educational modules should appear in new driving schools, and the content will continue to develop on the responsibility portal.RF.

According to the State Traffic Inspectorate, in January—September 2025, 7.9 thousand accidents involving drunk drivers occurred in Russia. This is 12.3% less than a year earlier. 2.1 thousand people died in these accidents, more than 10 thousand were injured. Another 1.7 thousand accidents were caused by drivers who refused medical examination.