Social | Community
Activities related to road safety

The Bridgestone Road Safety Project, implemented by Thai Bridgestone Co., Ltd. in partnership with the AIP Foundation^*1, addresses road safety challenges in Thailand. This initiative aims to improve road safety knowledge and behavior among students and teachers, while establishing a network of Bridgestone’s Youth Champions for sustained advocacy. Another arm of the project focuses on the local community, particularly on youth, and includes solutions such as improved infrastructure and empowering Bridgestone teammates to engage with communities.

AIP Foundation noted, “Our Partnership with Bridgestone is a powerful example of how collaboration can drive positive change in public health. We are grateful to have a partner who shares our commitment to making a meaningful impact to underserved communities.” The insights gained from collaborating with iRAP^*2 on road safety initiatives are being utilized in activities in other regions. Launched in 2021, this initiative has engaged 12 schools in Thailand and completed 3 road infrastructure improvements.

Firestone Natural Rubber, LLC invested $1.2M USD to maintain over 700 miles of roads and bridges in Liberia in 2023. The road maintenance project ensures that all people in the community have access to safe roads and bridges.

Since the collapse of the Du Bridge in Harbel, Liberia in 2017, Firestone Natural Rubber has partnered with the government of Liberia to repair this piece of critical infrastructure and contribute to other road safety projects. Maintaining roads for people living in Liberia benefits people of all ages and connects them to employment, medical care, and education, including an estimated 7,000 students attending local schools.

Bridgestone partnered with Road Safety Education Limited, an organization that offers the Ryda program, Australia and New Zealand’s largest and leading road safety education program for youth. Supporting a full complement of classroom learning materials, Ryda also features interactive workshops for young drivers and passengers, hosted across both countries. In 2024, a total of 62,294 students from 716 schools participated in 500 Ryda workshop days. The program gives students the tools and motivation they need to take responsible action as drivers and passengers and stay safe on roads.

In December 2024, Bridgestone Korea organized a Road Safety Engagement initiative to address a critical need in the South Korean market, where the majority of vehicles are privately owned and yet drivers often lack regular training and maintenance practices. Recognizing the importance of proper tire care, particularly for truck drivers, Bridgestone collaborated with Truck, Bus and Radial Family Channel (TBR FC) dealers and its own sales and technical teams to provide comprehensive tire care training.

This initiative aimed to educate and empower truck drivers on essential tire management practices, including tire pressure maintenance, identifying irregular wear, and understanding the causes of wear. The training consisted of three sessions, covering road safety and tire care topics, held at a dining venue near Truck Bus Radial Family Channel (TBR FC) dealer shops in South Gyeongsang Province on December 9 and 16, 2024.

The event involved three Bridgestone teammates representing Sales, Sustainability & Corporate Social Responsibility, and the Product Solution team, who worked together to ensure the training's success. A total of 100 truck drivers visiting the TBR FC dealer shops participated in the sessions.

Truck drivers expressed their appreciation, with many stating that the training greatly helped them understand road safety and tire care -- a topic they had not previously given much thought to. Several participants highlighted the scarcity of such training opportunities and encouraged more frequent sessions.

Encouraged by the overwhelmingly positive feedback, Bridgestone Korea plans to expand the program going forward, offering more training sessions and involving additional TBR FC dealers to enhance road safety across the country.

On August 21, 2023, Bridgestone Taiwan received a Certificate of Appreciation from Minister of Transportation and Communications Wang Kwo-Tsai in recognition of its contribution to the BuBu Sharing initiative. During a visit to Jianshi Township in Hsinchu County, Minister Wang witnessed firsthand how this service enables elderly residents to participate in social activities, such as dining together, which would otherwise be difficult due to limited transportation options.

Addressing mobility challenges in rural Taiwan: Taiwan’s remote areas are characterized by rugged mountainous terrain, poor road conditions, and faster tire wear. Additionally, low population density makes it difficult for traditional public transportation services to operate, creating challenges for residents in accessing essential services such as healthcare, education, and employment.

To help bridge this gap, Bridgestone Taiwan has been supporting the BuBu Sharing initiative since 2018 through tire donations, ensuring safer and more reliable transportation for residents.

Launched by the Ministry of Transportation and Communications in 2018, the BuBu Sharing initiative is a people-centered, flexible transportation service designed to address mobility issues in rural areas. Incorporating local drivers, diverse vehicles, and nonprofit organizations, the program offers point-to-point, reservation-based shared transport for essential needs like attending school, receiving medical care, and commuting.

Bridgestone Taiwan partnered with the government-commissioned private organization Din Han Engineering in 2021 to further strengthen the initiative, ensuring safe and sustainable transport solutions for rural communities. The program was later renamed the Happiness Bus 2.0 Project to reflect its evolving impact.

Key outcome of the BuBu Sharing initiative: Over the past six years, BuBu Sharing has significantly improved transportation accessibility in remote communities. In 2023, the initiative made an outcome through:

• 345 days of operation/service
• 17,674 passengers/beneficiaries served
• 3,193 trips completed
• 54,542 kilometers covered

Beyond transportation, the initiative has played a crucial role in enhancing the quality of life for rural residents by:

• Providing essential access to education, healthcare, and work opportunities
• Supporting local businesses through improved mobility
• Strengthening community connections and fostering social interaction
• Promoting Bridgestone’s commitment to corporate social responsibility (CSR) and sustainable mobility solutions

Through ongoing collaboration with stakeholders, Bridgestone Taiwan remains committed to ensuring safe and inclusive transportation, helping to bridge the urban-rural divide and improve everyday mobility for those in need.

Bridgestone is making community safety more sustainable with its services, products, and initiatives. For example, during Vietnam’s rainy seasons, many of the country’s worn-out wooden bridges pose significant safety challenges for people commuting to work and school. To help, the Bridge to Knowledge campaign, led by Bridgestone Tire Sales Vietnam LLC, aims to build and maintain bridges in the country for ten years.

The Group built one new bridge in Vietnam in 2024, bringing the total number of bridges built to 11 as of the end of 2024. The new bridge serves 330 people in the community, including 40 students. This infrastructure provides peace of mind and safe access to educational facilities and amenities.

In 2024, Bridgestone’s technical team in Vietnam provided onsite training on road safety and tire safety knowledge to fleet customer Yusen Logistics and other OEM dealers. The team also distributed road safety stickers to further encourage road safety practices.

Bridgestone held a road safety event in cooperation with the NETTO retail chain. Team members checked tread depth, adjusted tire pressure, and informed customers about optimum tire conditions. This event focused on raising awareness of the importance of keeping tires in good condition. 48 cars were checked in total and 64 end users reached through the program. Six teammates volunteered in setting up the booth and checking tires.

Bridgestone Tatabánya hosted its annual Road Safety Day in August 2024, bringing together employees and their families for an engaging and educational experience.

The day featured a variety of activities designed to promote road safety awareness. Attendees had the opportunity to experience a roll-over crash simulator and a drink-driving simulator, providing impactful lessons on the importance of safe driving. Demonstrations by firefighters showcased real-life rescue operations, including dramatic traffic accident rescues, leaving a lasting impression on participants.

Children enjoyed the mini traffic circuit, where they could drive small electric cars and learn about road safety in a fun, interactive setting. Local police were also among those who contributed to the event, with a wheel of fortune game and informative materials, enhancing the day’s educational value.

Media engagement further expanded the reach of the Road Safety Day: the main local print medium in the county reported on the event. The Road Safety Day exemplified Bridgestone’s commitment to fostering a culture of safety, both on and off the road, while providing a memorable experience for approximately 2,300 participants.

In Poznan, Poland, employee volunteers have been involved in road safety education since 2008. Interactive road safety lessons are conducted with the Bridgestone Test Dummy character. To date, employees have offered 550 workshops to almost 40,000 students in more than 600 schools in and around Poznan.

Bridgestone South Africa continued with its Brake & Tire Watch initiative, which is aimed at raising awareness among transport operators about the importance of efficient braking, tire checks, and preventative maintenance on trucks. The initiative covers all safety-critical aspects, including tires, lighting, reflective markings, and more, ensuring that vehicles are roadworthy and safe.

A key aspect of the project is empowering traffic officials with specialized knowledge. This enables them to perform their roles more effectively, particularly in identifying and removing unroadworthy heavy vehicles from the roads. Bridgestone’s Technical Manager led essential tire safety training sessions in collaboration with Fleet Watch, in the form of monthly workshops. These workshops reached 800 traffic officers, providing them with the expertise needed to enhance road safety and enforce regulations more efficiently. This initiative underscores Bridgestone's commitment to improving road safety and supporting the professional development of road safety officials.

Bridgestone UK & Ireland organized an innovative road safety campaign based on a postcard, demonstrating to motorists the size of the contact patch that connects their car to the road. The postcard also outlined a simple three-point check for tire tread depth, pressure and condition, and encouraged motorists to check their tires regularly. The cards were distributed at a number of tire check events in the UK and Ireland. The locations included Bridgestone premises, motorway service outlets, and car enthusiast events. The objective at these events was to have people check their tires and to encourage family and friends to do the same by passing on the tire check message and knowledge provided on the card. By distributing the cards and showing others how to check tires, participants could become “Road Safety Heroes.” The card and tire safety message was also distributed and promoted digitally, with 3,000 cards distributed, reaching 70,000 people during the campaign, which coincided with the UK and Ireland's national tire safety promotion. There were 15 staff members directly involved in the activities across the region.

The Bicycle Use Promotion Act came into force in 2017 in Japan. Coupled with the spread of battery-assisted bicycles, the country has seen increasingly diverse opportunities for bicycle use, including for picking up and dropping off children at daycare centers, for senior citizens who stop driving motor vehicles, and for the proliferation of delivery services. These changes have put a spotlight on new bicycle traffic safety issues.

As an authority in the bicycle industry in Japan, Bridgestone Cycle Co., Ltd. works with local governments, schools, and police stations nationwide to carry out bicycle road safety courses for each life stage, from preschoolers to families and senior citizens. The courses provide opportunities to learn road safety rules, incorporating safe bicycle riding methods and training in risk prediction based on observations from actual bicycle accident sites. In 2024, Bridgestone Cycle Co., Ltd. conducted 54 bicycle road safety courses for 2,600 people. Based on the knowledge gained from the courses, Bridgestone Cycle Co., Ltd. has produced a road safety awareness video.

In addition, Bridgestone Cycle Co., Ltd. is participating in trials spanning various industries, including automakers and insurance companies, that aim to achieve zero traffic fatalities and injuries to children and damage to bicycles. Also, Bridgestone Cycle Co., Ltd. works with the National Police Agency, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, and local governments across the country, and collaborates from a policy perspective as part of a partnership between the public and private sectors.

Bridgestone Cycle Co., Ltd. tailors its bicycle safety seminars to local issues. Also, recognizing the difficulty of achieving zero traffic fatalities and injuries through its own efforts alone, it is actively working to collaborate with the public and private sectors and other industries in road safety awareness activities.

As Japanese society ages, accidents caused by elderly drivers are increasing. Bridgestone is participating in Good Driver Lesson road safety courses targeting senior citizens. The hands-on courses, organized by the NPO Good Driver Lesson in collaboration with automakers, insurance companies, local car dealerships, local governments, local police, and other stakeholders, aim to prevent accidents among elderly drivers. In 2024, a total of 10 courses were held, with a total of 380 people participating.

Taking into consideration the physical and cognitive functions necessary for safe driving, the hands-on Good Driver Lessons for elderly drivers seek to prevent unfortunate accidents by conveying the message that cars are not just convenient tools, but that driving can be enjoyable, and to help these drivers to continue to enjoy safe, enjoyable, and comfortable experiences with cars. Bridgestone’s role in the courses is to offer lectures on tire safety; it conducts awareness-raising activities on the dangers of worn tires and the importance of checking air pressure and other tire inspections.