The Freedoms You Have
Being involved in driver training for decades, I would often ask new drivers of different ages why they wanted their driver’s licenses. A big “I want freedom” was the common answer. Yes, getting a driver’s license was indeed freedom, but not the kind of freedom they were thinking of.
Yes, a driver’s license can give you the freedom to come and go as you please, provided you have a vehicle to go along with it. In some cases, having a driver’s license can help you get a job and driving may be the job itself. That’s a lot of freedom. But, what about the other freedoms that come with a driver’s license? Perhaps you haven’t thought of them all.
At any age when we become licensed drivers, we’ll often go out with family and friends to have a good time, driving to get there. That seems to be our freedom too. Driving a vehicle means we also have the freedom to pay for vehicle insurance and pay for any deductible required after being involved in a vehicle collision. We have the freedom to pay for the fuel we use in order to operate our vehicles.
We also have the freedom to pay for any tickets we receive for not following the driving laws each time we have the freedom to drive. That freedom may cost us a little more than our budget allows, but they do happen. With some tickets, they can easily blend into your insurance costs and that could increase because of your freedoms.
We still have the freedom to go out with our friends and have a good time. We have the freedom to decide where we go, what we do, and even if we’re going to consume alcohol or not. Freedom of choice as it seems. Our freedoms related to driving don’t end there though.
It seems that some people feel they have the freedom to get into their vehicle after consuming alcohol and drive home, even though they may have alternatives they could use to get home. If this seems to be the way these individuals want to go, they will also have a few additional freedoms. They’ll have the freedom to visit anyone they injured from their choices as they lay in a hospital bed. They too would have the freedom to speak to the family of those who were injured about why they made those choices.
And finally, they would have the freedom to pay their respects to anyone who died from their actions…their freedom to make those choices. How does this sound? Have I added any freedoms you haven’t thought about yet? It’s not too late to change your list.
Our friends at Not Your Child Corp can help you with your freedom of choice. They can offer you individual or single-use breathalyzers to your list of freedoms. You would have the freedom to use them to know if you are safe and legal to drive your vehicle after consuming alcohol. That sounds like a much safer freedom if you ask me. It’s your choice though. You have the freedom to make it a good one though.
Scott Marshall has spent over 30 years promoting road safety in many jurisdictions. He has been a road safety journalist since 2005. Scott was also an on-air judge on the Discovery Network’s Canada’s Worst Driver during their first 3 seasons on the air. Not YourChildCorp. is proud to have Scott @Safedriver as a frequent contributor, his insights are irreplaceable.
