The Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT) has announced the winners of the annual Safe Streets Smart Trips high school video contest. This competition, which began in 2014, invites students from across Massachusetts to create videos that highlight roadway safety for various travel modes. The aim is to reduce pedestrian and bicyclist injuries and fatalities.
This year, submissions were received from high schools statewide, with six finalists’ videos selected for screening at MassDOT’s 2025 Moving Together Conference. Students were tasked with producing a 30-60 second video focused on “Safe Walking, Biking, and Driving Behaviors.”
Undersecretary and Highway Administrator Jonathan Gulliver expressed enthusiasm about the contest’s impact: “The Safe Streets Smart Trips video contest gives young and passionate filmmakers the chance to educate a wide audience of road users on safety,” he said. “We are thrilled to recognize this year’s contest winners whose creative work embodies the idea of ‘Safe Walking, Biking, and Driving Behaviors’, reminding us to consider the diverse experiences of all road users. Congratulations to the winners and many thanks to everyone who participated and helped to amplify the importance of safety.”
The contest is part of the Massachusetts Strategic Highway Safety Plan’s initiative to promote safe travel behaviors. It is open to all public high school students in Massachusetts, featuring categories for Freshmen/Sophomores and Juniors/Seniors.
In the Freshman/Sophomore category, Cole Bouchard, Leandro Belicio, Aaron Charest, Max Forgues, and Trent Barboza from Dartmouth High School won with their video titled “Coach P’s Walk to School Class.” In the Junior/Senior category, Joel Chuku, John Fitzgerald, Abraham Muniz Quiros, Noah Koza, Edwin Olney, and Brendan Sullivan from Burncoat High School in Worcester won with “Buckle Up.”
Runners-up included Katie Eisenstadt and Kayla Lee from Sharon High School for “The Code of the Road” in the Freshman/Sophomore category. In the Junior/Senior category runners-up were Micah Klein, Yossi Danzig, Levi Rosenberg-Van Gameren, and Charlie Shortsleeve from Newton North High School with “Safe Driving League.”
Honorable mentions went to Ashlyn Baugher, Tamar Cohen, Quinn Durken, Micah Feldman, and Riley Furtado from Newton North High School for “Use Your Brain” in the Freshman/Sophomore category. Jacob Yee, Nathan Quinn, and Hannah Blauch from Medford Vocational Technical High School received an honorable mention in the Junior/Senior category for “Heads Up, Phones Down, Safe Driving All Around.”
Winners received prizes including $600 Amazon gift cards for grand prize videos and $300 Amazon gift cards for runner-up videos. These top videos may also be featured in future safety campaigns.
The winning videos can be viewed on MassDOT’s Roadway Safety Video Contest Results page. More information about the contest is available at Mass.gov/roadway-safety-video or by calling 857-383-3807.
Information from this article can be found here.
