Did you know that 65% of drivers never took any sort of formal education? Teens Learn to Drive (TL2D) helps to solve that problem by educating young drivers in Ontario.
I first heard of this company when I worked for them two summers ago. I was hired by the founder and president Anne Marie Hayes. Her mission is to make the roads safe for young teens through TL2D. She was inspired to create this organization when her own daughter became old enough to drive.
TL2D spreads the message of safe driving in two ways. The first is through videos. The team works to create educational videos to help young drivers, such as a series of how to share the road with trucks. Every season, the team also works to create a campaign that centers around their PSA for the year. Two years ago, when I worked there, the PSA was #LikeYouCare. The year after was #NotWorthTheRisk.
The second way that TL2D promotes safe driving is by presenting the Sweet Life Road Show, which was an annual event pre-COVID. The Sweet Life Road Show was made up of different stations that educated teens about safe driving. In groups, students would go around to the different stations and learn about different topics including drinking and driving and doozy drinking, as well as a station with police officers and truck drivers. Each station is designed to show teens the dangers of unsafe driving.
Today, TL2D is working on the Youth Vision Network. The Youth Vision Network is a network of high school kids from all across Ontario. It will be their job to help spread the message of safe driving with the guidance of TL2D. They will host parts of the Sweet Life Road Show in their own schools, as well as making their own content to share with their peers. They’ll also be able to collect all 40 of their volunteer hours and get a scholarship to help with school.
A lot of people think that once they get their license they know everything and are ready to go everywhere. Working for this company has shown me that that isn’t true. I myself took a driving course yet am still learning new things about driving through TL2D. This is why it is their mission to help spread awareness and help make the roads safer for all drivers, pedestrians and everyone else who uses the roads. If you’re interested to learn more or want to check out the campaigns, you can find all you need on their website, Teens Learn to Drive. You can also follow them on all social media platforms @TL2DToday.