In the Netherlands we have a serious problem with people using violence against ambulance workers or fellow citizens. When rescue workers turn up to assist a victim the family and/or friends will threaten them and even use violence. The reason they do this is beyond me as they are preventing them to help the victim.

Most of the times bystanders don’t do anything at all to help, not even placing an emergency phone call. That they don’t take action I can understand people have been beaten up or worse, murdered, just to take a stance by saying something. But that doesn’t take away that we don’t even make a phone call for assistance.

So the Dutch government’s center for public service information, Postbus 51, has now put up two billboards, one in Amsterdam and one in Rotterdam, with a public awareness spot using augmented reality.

The part of the ambulance being attacked by trouble makers has been filmed before hand on a green screen while using augmented reality to film the bystanders of the billboard into the spot as bystanders of the violence happening.

Hopefully this kind of awareness will be more effective then the standard Postbus 51 spot they show on TV. If we know that we can count on our fellow citizens if we are in need of help we will feel safer when outside amongst others.

And as for the geek in me, way cool to live in a country who doesn’t shy away to implement the latest technologies albeit not always(public transport chip cards is nothing to write home about) in a successful way.