L2P graduates have earned their wheels
Alisha Darby and another half-a-dozen drivers sing the praises of a volunteer program which has helped them get their licences.
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Unless you have a driver’s licence, it can be difficult to get around Murray Bridge, and Alisha Darby knows it.
Until not so long ago, she and her three kids did a lot of walking: to school, the shops and any appointments, distances sometimes measured in kilometres.
Then she discovered L2P Murraylands, whose volunteer driving instructors help eligible learner drivers log the hours of practice they need to get a provisional licence at a heavily discounted cost.
The program targets people aged 16-25 who do not have much family or community support, those on low incomes, and recently arrived migrants and refugees.
Last Thursday, Ms Darby and half a dozen other graduates received certificates for completing the L2P program and earning the ability to drive unsupervised.
“If we’ve got an appointment, I can actually drive the kids there (now),” she said.
“I wouldn’t be able to do it at all if it wasn’t for this program.”
Around 20 people gathered at the Station, Murray Bridge’s youth centre, for the graduation ceremony.
Mayor Wayne Thorley handed out certificates to each graduate while program coordinator Peter Sawley hovered in the background.
“It’s a really important thing, what you’ve been doing,” Mr Thorley said.
“When you live in a place like Murray Bridge, it’s really hard to get around unless you can run really fast or you can drive a car.
“It’s really important to have access to transport if you want to work, if you want to socialise … and, importantly, if you want employment, to get to work on time and to finish and go home.”
As a Country Fire Service volunteer who had attended some bad road accidents over the years, he said, he was glad to see drivers getting the training they needed.
What would their newfound licences mean to the program’s other graduates?
“Freedom,” one said.
“I had to ride a pushbike and in winter it was horrible,” said another.
Ms Darby now has her sights set on becoming a volunteer with L2P Murraylands when she earns her full licence.
She hoped to enrol her kids in the program when they were old enough, too.
“Mentoring, teaching others – it’d be nice,” she said.
The L2P program has now trained more than 40 local drivers since its first graduates earned their P-plates in 2021.
- More information: www.l2p.org.au.
