Alberta’s Office of Traffic Safety is encouraging drivers to reconsider texting while driving with a new initiative that reminds them about the province’s Distracted Driving legislation.

With creative by Red the Agency and media by Edmonton-based Mediactive, the “Crotches Kill” campaign primarily targets males over the age of 18 using OOH ads, radio spots on stations across the province and online ads on entertainment sites such as ETOnline.com and Accesshollywood.com. The OOH includes traditional billboards, static and digital boards in restaurant washrooms and talking urinal pucks in men’s washrooms.

Shellee Ritzman, managing account director, Red the Agency, says that the radio and OOH ads aim to reach the target demo while they’re driving so they’ll think twice about pulling out their phones. She adds that the washroom spots, in particular the talking urinal pucks, were meant to reach people in unexpected environments.

Meanwhile, Ryan Kelly, executive creative director, Red the Agency, says the campaign aims to set itself apart from other public safety initiatives by avoiding typical messages that include stats about the dangers of texting and driving,

“The language we used was provocative and we tried to talk about the problem in a new way. It wasn’t about overplaying the heavy-handed and emotional sides of things. It’s about calling you out on your behaviour and catching you in the act,” he says.

The campaign runs until the end of March.