CHAPTER 17
When I first visited my sister Pamela after she moved to America, I was very impressed when I saw that her teenage children were being taught to drive at high school through a driver’s education programme (Driver Ed). The grounds of the high schools in America are usually enormous and ideal for teaching driving skills, but unfortunately most schools in Ireland wouldn’t have that facility. Although it took me a while to do anything about it, I became convinced that driving instruction for young people before they had their provisional driving licences would mean that there would be fewer accidents on the road. The earlier you get a young person behind the wheel, the easier it is for them to learn. I should know – didn’t I do it myself with my dad in that field in Tallaght?
I approached several people in Dáil Éireann and met with little enthusiasm. I had a long discussion with Séamus Brennan, who had been Minister for Transport, and he listened patiently to my passionate plea for young people to be given this opportunity to learn the basics before they went on the roads of Ireland. ‘It sounds like a great idea,’ he said, ‘but I’m afraid I can’t help you.’ I was very disappointed and was about to leave when he apologised again and asked me if I would be able to help him. Apparently Séamus couldn’t drive and he wanted me to give him lessons so that he could pass his driving test. I did as he asked, but the irony of it seemed to escape him.
I decided that I would have to go it alone, so I did my research in the US and Europe, where it was normal practice, and set about developing what I called a Think Awareness Transition Year Driving Programme, suitable for young people in Ireland. Private instruction on private ground with qualified instructors meant that children could learn the basics of driving and road safety before venturing out on to the public roads. The three main things I required were the venue, backing from the motor trade and suitable instructors.
I went around to all my acquaintances in the motor trade in an attempt to get support and sponsorship but some of them turned me down flat and others couldn’t get their heads around such a new concept. Eventually, I borrowed money from my friend Pat Doyle and started the Rosemary Smith School of Motoring in 1999. I approached Fairyhouse Racecourse because I knew they had extensive grounds, which they were not using all the time, and they were happy to accommodate me. Next, I sourced some reliable instructors, the most important requirement being that they could relate to teenagers. Keane Harley, a father himself, was an excellent classroom teacher, who understood how to explain the basics in a way that could be easily understood.
Together with some advisors, I devised a programme consisting of a one-day course for young people aged from 15 to 17, suitable for Transition Year students. In Ireland, Transition Year is a one-year programme taken after the Junior Certificate and before the two-year Leaving Certificate programme. The students do not need a driving licence as the lessons take place on private grounds away from traffic and the school provides comprehensive insurance. With help from Keane, a website was created: www.rosemarysmith.ie. (I am completely useless when it comes to computers despite the fact that I am constantly trying to get my head around them.) Before long, schools responded and the business took off. I worked so hard during the early years, travelling up and down the country to reach teenagers who couldn’t get to Dublin for lessons.
For a few years everything went well until Fairyhouse had to rebuild the stands and needed the space. Luckily enough, I was able to move across the road to Tattersalls, who were happy to have us, until they too had plans for expansion and we were left with nowhere to go. I went to Naas, the Curragh and other racecourses to try and find somewhere suitable; eventually, someone suggested I try Goffs, and we have been there ever since. Goffs on the Naas Road in Kildare is Ireland’s leading Bloodstock Sales Company with vast grounds and it suits perfectly.
I received support from Skoda and Ford for many years, but all good things have to end at some stage. Having driven Ford models for many years, I was sad when we parted company. I had met so many wonderful people during my time with them and the support they gave me was invaluable. But it was time to move on and some good journalist friends put me in touch with Renault, who asked me to become one of the Ambassadors for Renault Clio Ireland in 2016. They supplied me with a Renault Clio car to use in the school, and I am very grateful to them.
I love teaching the youngsters to drive and I feel that a lot of older people could do with some up-to-date tuition. Some of them don’t know the new rules of the road, don’t understand how roundabouts work and are confused by three-lane motorways. It worries me and I feel that everybody over a certain age should get tested. Young people are more inclined to listen; sometimes older people think they know it all. A very close friend of mine said to me one day that she knew she was probably the worst driver in the world but she had never had an accident. ‘Yes,’ I replied, ‘but how many have you caused?’ She wasn’t just bad, she was dreadful, but refused to take up my offer of a lesson or two.
As I write, the school is still going strong and we have many students every year receiving their first experience of driving and road safety. I am very proud of that achievement and convinced that this early learning will make all those young people safer drivers in the long run.