Cologne (dpa / lnw) – In order to counteract the increasing number of illegal car races, the NRW Ministry of the Interior has started a prevention campaign for young people and young adults. It is called “Responsibility stops full throttle” and was presented on Thursday at a kick-off event in a comprehensive school in Cologne. Minister of the Interior Herbert Reul and Minister of Education Dorothee Feller (both CDU) emphasized the danger posed by such races. The approximately 100 students who take part in the concept at the school were also affected. Police officers showed demolished vehicles from an accident.
The street is not the right place to test your own limits, said Reul. This knowledge is particularly important for students who are just getting their driver’s license. According to Feller, the teaching concept is designed in such a way that the participants slip into different roles in a court case – for example that of a passenger. They then decide on a punishment for a fictitious main offender.
According to the Ministry of the Interior, the campaign will initially start at selected schools and driving schools and should become established nationwide from the 2023/2024 school year. In 2021, according to the NRW Ministry of the Interior, those responsible for accidents in illegal car races in Germany were on average 26 years old.
