In 2025, 1,580 persons lost their lives in accidents on rural roads. In total, this makes up 56 percent of all road fatalities. One of the measures to increase safety on rural roads is the ‘Drive safely!’ rural road safety campaign launched by the German Road Safety Council (DVR) in 2021 and supported by the Federal Ministry for Transport (BMV) and the German Statutory Accident Insurance Institution (DGUV).

Accidents on rural roads have especially serious consequences

While accidents on rural roads “only” account for around 23 percent of all accidents involving injuries, they are much more likely to cause serious or fatal injuries. There are various reasons for this, such as the lack of any structural separation from the oncoming traffic on rural roads.

Compared with motorways, there are additional hazards, such as wildlife crossing the road or bends, which are a crucial factor in accidents on rural roads and their consequences.

Campaign uses roadside posters and social media to raise awareness of accident risks on rural roads

One of the key elements of the prevention campaign is the display of billboard posters along rural roads as well as in rural regions. Other campaign initiatives include advertising at petrol stations, a video series, radio ads and social media activities, aimed at raising risk awareness and increasing attentiveness on rural roads.

This year’s campaign motto, ‘Hartes Pflaster Landstraße’ (‘Rural roads: it’s tough out here’), uses particularly blunt and eye-catching imagery. The new motifs show typical hazardous situations on rural roads and translate them into strong, clear messages to draw drivers’ and motorcyclists’ attention to the risks of driving on rural roads. 

Poster motifs of the 2026 rural road safety campaign

To read more about the rural road safety campaign, please visit the website of the German Road SafetCouncil (German only).

You can also find more information on the Council’s YouTube channel.

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