Dittmar Walther works in the service department at ZÖLLER-KIPPER – among other things, he transfers vehicles, gives demonstrations and briefings. In the last week of March, he was on the road on a very special mission: road safety education.

As part of the “Blicki blickt’s” initiative, ZÖLLER-KIPPER visited several elementary schools in Mainz with a MEDIUM X2 on a Mercedes Actros. The goal was to give children the chance to experience large vehicles up close and learn about dangers such as long braking distances and blind spots. But Dittmar Walther also gained a new perspective.

The longest trip was probably from the ZÖLLER factory to the school. Not much driving after that, right?

That’s true, but the kids would have loved to go for a ride. One boy climbed into the cab, sat down, and looked at me expectantly: “Okay, we’re ready to go.” I asked him, “How much time do you have?”

And?

No, no—we stayed put. I was there to answer questions in the cab and keep an eye on the children. It’s amazing what they’re curious about. They wanted to know how much metal is used in a truck like this, what the ‘A’ sign means, and whether the truck runs on diesel or electricity. And all those buttons! What do they do? One kid even told me he could already drive a tractor.

And the blind spot?

That definitely got a lot of “oohs” and “ahhs” and left an impression on every child. No matter how far they leaned forward—even pressing their noses against the windshield—they simply couldn’t see their classmates standing in front of the truck. The same went for the rearview mirrors.

Admittedly, we had to mask off a few safety features on our Actros so that we didn’t spoil the “demonstration effect”.

The really clever ones had of course also noticed the camera – and remarked you could just see the others on the screen … But not every truck has as many safety assistants as we do.

I explained that while we have cameras, many trucks don’t, so they shouldn’t assume a driver can see them.

Did these “school days” change how you see road traffic?

I drive a lot, and I really enjoy it. But I’m always very aware of how dangerous a truck can be. You have to be 100 percent focused behind the wheel and always think ahead—not just because of the kids, but because of the adults too.

The games we played to illustrate braking distances were interesting. Some kids thought a truck’s stopping distance at 50 km/h was just two meters—when in reality, it’s 25 meters!

So, you’ll be back for the next Blicki workshop?

Of course! I think it’s a great initiative to teach kids about traffic dangers in a hands-on way. It’s definitely something worth supporting. I also feel that because kids today are driven around so much, they have less awareness of traffic. That’s why programs like Blicki are so important!

ZÖLLER-KIPPER COO Markus Dautermann shared similar thoughts when handing out participation certificates to the children: “Blicki is a cause close to our hearts—both as a company and for me personally. We want to help protect road users, especially the most vulnerable: children. In urban areas, encounters with 26-ton trucks are relatively rare, aside from the occasional garbage truck. That’s why education and awareness are so important. Unfortunately, we’ve all seen how serious road accidents can be. Every accident we can prevent is a success.”

Successful completion: The children of the Martinus School in Mainz-Weisenau with their teacher, the Blicki pedagogue and Vanessa Platz. She looks after the needs of pedestrians in Mainz. They are followed by Blicki himself, Markus Dautermann, COO ZÖLLER-KIPPER and also from the City of Mainz Janina Steinkrüger, Christian Kron, Head of Traffic Management and Sevim Turna.

You can read more about ZÖLLER-KIPPER’s commitment to road safety and Blicki blickt’s here.