The following letter was taken from the Caymanian Compass Thursday 8th February, 2007
Protect our young drivers
I’m just returning home after a two–week vacation off island and was reading the newspapers to get caught up with the news.
I read the Editorial in the 30 January edition of your paper, which dealt with our young drivers speeding and I must say I agree whole heartedly.
Suggestions to help deter these senseless deaths? When a youth is caught speeding, take their license away for a year or two. No questions asked, just automatically relieve them of their dearest treasure: their drivers license.
Also, why can’t Government or the private sector get behind Robert Campbell of Campbell’s Auto and help him complete the Breakers Speedway?
If the youths have a place where they can go and drive in a safe environment and also get good driving education, we’ll see a drastic change on our roads.
Make Drivers Ed a mandatory part of the school curriculum. Classes can take place on weekends at the Speedway.
Something has to be done; our young men are killing themselves off before they can take their place in society. No price is too high in order to save our precious young people....our future.
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This is been a topic of discussion for the past 4-5 years. What can we do to help protect our yougn children? Some people blame the vehciles, some blame the parents. I blame the DRIVERS!!! I'm most of fed up with hearing and reading about implementing laws to restrict the power of cars. Before reading anymore I want you to sit and think about deaths (under 25 years, caused by speeding) that have occured over the past 5 years. I would say that the number is somewhere around 20+. Now out of those 20+ deaths how many were in what we would called high powered cars? I am willing to bet my entire life savings and everything I own as of today that if there were 20 road deaths in the past 5 years that at least 16 were in a Honda. Of that 16 14 were Civics. Of the 20+ that have died each knew the one that past before him (I think it's safe to say that each Honda man knows the other). Even if they didn't personally know them they knew someone that did.
We ask ourselves what can be done? Unfortunately my answer is NOTHING! There is nothing we can do to stop this, unless we just don't make them drive at all. I've noticed that there are more police cars on the roads recently. That could help but we only have limited resources. Instead of looking for ways to stop these senseless deaths I instead thank God that so far there has only been one innocent person whose life ended too soon.
Every single time you seat yourself behind the steering wheel you have a responsibility to drive in teh dafest manner possible. What's unfortunate is that most of the young drivers believe that certain laws of physics don't apply to them (i.e. taking a corner 90+mph in Honda). I'm sure each of us were told by our parents to be careful when behind the wheel. And I'm sure each of the young men that died in the past 5 years were told the same thing.
So let's not point the fingers at the "power" of the cars or the parents. Yes parents have an influence, and yes a car with a higher amount of power can be dangerous in the wrong hands, but the bottom line is self discipline! I've driven cars that can be determined as "powerful" but I've yet to put one into a lightpole or a wall due to wreckless driving. And yes I do agree that building a race track where we can race in a safe controlled environment would be beneficial. Will stop the senseless deaths......NO. In the end if a person wants to speed they will speed. Let's just hope no more innocent lives are taken because of another person felt that he was "in control".
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