FEATURE - The power of ‘Braking the Cycle’

Nambour’s PCYC and Braking the Cycle are helping young people learn to drive, thanks to a team of dedicated volunteer mentors.

by Rebecca Mugridge

According to the Department of Transport in Queensland, if you're a learner driver under 25, you need a minimum of 100 hours of supervised driving recorded in your log book before you can sit for your driving test, and at least 10 of those hours need to be night driving.

These requirements make for safer drivers on our roads, but they also create serious barriers for some young people.

Obtaining your licence is a milestone in the majority of teenagers’ lives, it opens up the world, enables them to work across more types of jobs and gives them independence and freedom to move about.

But not all young people have the opportunity to learn how to drive; for many teens access to an adult driver, and a safe car to collect those 100 hours of experience, can make it unobtainable.

This is where Nambour’s PCYC and Braking the Cycle Program Coordinator Krista Flick, with her team of dedicated volunteer mentors, are helping Nambour. Krista is the well-loved ‘driving force’ behind this program in Nambour and also Caloundra.

“Having a coordinator like Krista makes it easy,” says mentor Sally Pabst-Reeves. Sally is impressive, 26 years in the Australian Army and 17 years working for the Commonwealth Ombudsmen before retiring. Now she donates her time to help young people learn to drive.

“It is very fulfilling and it is a lot of fun, and like any parent or guardian helping their teenager learn, there’s no denying there are heart-in-the-mouth moments. I would not suggest you did this if you had any sort of cardiac issues,” Sally jokes. 

“But it is actually an honour, it really is, to be able to give back to the community and see these guys progress and get their licence. It is a real pleasure.

“I come from a background where we were socioeconomically challenged so I can appreciate the challenges these kids are now facing. If I’d had the same criteria placed upon me when I got my licence I’d still be without, because I did not have access to a car and my parents could not drive. My car was the first car we had in the family.

“If anyone has the opportunity to give up half a day a week, do it. You’ll get far more back than what you ever put into it.”

Braking the Cycle supports learner drivers aged 16 to 25, who don’t have access to a supervisor or registered vehicle, to complete their logbook hours, free of charge.

The program is offered at 57 locations in Queensland and assists more than 900 young people each year. Since starting in 2012, Braking the Cycle has helped more than 5500 people to obtain their licence.

“A lot of young people are from vulnerable backgrounds or situations,” says Coordinator Krista.

“We can support young people from when they first enter the program, to obtaining their licence. We can support them to get their hazard perception test, which is around $40, we can pay for their test booking which is another $65, and we can pay a year’s licence.”

They also run road and car safety workshops like a recent one on buying your first car.

Not all young people have someone to go with them who has knowledge of cars, many young people are getting ripped off when they buy that first car.

Young Kelby is keen to be part of the program. “This is going to help me in life because a lot of my goals are related to getting a licence, like a motorcycle apprenticeship.

“My sister did it four years ago and then my brother did it as well, now I’m going through it.”

“That is really special,” says Krista, “Seeing an entire sibling group come through the program. That really feeds into the whole premise of ‘Braking the Cycle’.”

Recent success story Zahkayla says it has helped her enormously. “When I found out I was pregnant I had the option to either stay mainstream or go to a flexi school or attend Stem at Burnside High.

“At first, I thought all that way to Nambour was too far, but then I heard about the free driving program [close by] at PCYC. I really needed the lessons so that was the selling point.”

Zahkayla went to school and to lessons while catching the train from Beerburrum with her baby.

She recently obtained her driver’s licence - and had her second baby! 

“It has definitely helped me a lot and given me stability.”

Fellow student Teigan says it’s the people that make the program.

“The reason I like PCYC so much is that I feel comfortable coming here and learning to drive. The mentors are very welcoming, and they are good drivers,” she smiles.

Krista says that they are always looking for new mentors.

“We encourage people from all walks of life. At the moment we are needing late afternoon and early evening mentors for the night driving section of their logbooks, particularly some more female mentors would be super helpful.

“Those ten hours [night driving] are often the last ones they need to get done,” she says.

“We have Braking the Cycle vehicles that are fully insured and we can support mentors through the application process to get their Blue Card

.

“The other positive thing for our mentors and participants is when they are spending an hour and a half together, it’s really beautiful to see those connections.”