By DayakDaily Team
KUCHING, Jan 13: Team Safety Squad from SJKC Chung Hua Tudan in Miri has secured a EUR5,000 road-safety grant after being crowned Malaysia’s champion in the VIA Safe Mobility 2025 programme, a national win that has also prompted local council action to assess safety improvements near the school.
According to a press release, the Sarawak-based team earned the grant from TotalEnergies to implement and expand its student-led road-safety initiatives, following strong school-wide engagement and advocacy efforts highlighted during the competition.
Located beside the high-speed Jalan Kuala Baram Bypass, SJKC Chung Hua Tudan sits along one of Miri’s accident-prone roads, making road safety a daily concern for pupils, parents, and teachers.
Guided by their teachers, the 10-member Team Safety Squad conducted on-site safety audits around the school, observing traffic flow and pedestrian movement during peak hours. Their findings pointed to key risks, including the absence of a safe pedestrian crossing directly in front of the school and low helmet-safety awareness among younger pupils.
Based on the audit, the team submitted a formal written request to the Miri City Council calling for the installation of a designated zebra crossing outside the school. Following the submission, the council initiated technical assessments, with engineers completing initial site measurements at the location.
In addition to infrastructure recommendations, the students rolled out a comprehensive road-safety campaign themed “See + Go = Safe. Helmet On, Worries Gone,” combining school-based education with community engagement activities. These efforts reached thousands of pupils, teachers, parents, and community members through safety camps, assemblies, public events, and peer-to-peer outreach sessions.
As Malaysia’s national champion, Team Safety Squad also represented the country at the VIA Safe Mobility Regional International Finals, competing alongside champion teams from India, Iraq and Romania, among participants from 24 countries across the region.
The VIA Safe Mobility programme, conducted in collaboration with Arus Academy, focuses on improving mobility conditions and fostering road-safety awareness among young people through hands-on, student-led learning.
Since its introduction in Malaysia, the programme has reached 81 schools nationwide, trained 2,632 student ambassadors and 121 teachers, and supported more than 14,000 learners through classroom and digital learning platforms. — DayakDaily
