‘My brother, gone in a crash’
So far this year 109 people have died on New Zealand’s roads. Last year there were 380 deaths. On average, more than one person per day dies in a fatal crash in this country. Often these figures appear abstract, but the pain is as real as it is heartbreak
Todd Melhop was driving home to the Mosgiel, south of Dunedin, from Christchurch the night of his crash, March 31, 2017.
The 29-year-old had arrived at Christchurch Airport about midnight. He decided to head south to Mosgiel straight away, but he fell asleep almost halfway through the trip. His car crossed the centre line, hitting an oncoming truck on State Highway 1. He died instantly.
Three weeks earlier, to the day, the Melhop family had reunited for Todd’s brother Luke’s wedding.
Luke spoke to The Pressin the aftermath of the 2018 Easter long weekend, during which four people died in road crashes. Easter holiday numbers has been tragic.
We’ve observed social media and commenters on news stories and posts when a road accident story is broken over the past year.
The standout trend we’ve noticed without fail is how often people attempt to justify road accidents, at the fault of outside circumstances. It’s always over- or under-policing, the speed limits, foreigners, road conditions, lack of government intervention, the skill of other drivers. It’s always something else.
There is validity to most opinion, and I personally think that systemic change needs to take place to reduce the toll.
In reality, though, we don’t have the means to change most of those circumstances easily or instantly.
Systemic change comes with government inquiry, with massive public scrutiny, and with subsequent law and policing change; a process that takes time, effort and funding.
Those opinions, however, won’t change the speed limit or road conditions tomorrow.
The one variable that can be changed instantly is personal responsibility.
Driving is a high risk activity. In essence, it comes down to a series of decisions made by the individual with their hands on the wheel.
Understanding that driving is first and foremost the responsibility of the individual, being intentional, and making small habitual changes to your own actions behind the wheel first, is a tangible and manageable method of change that everyone can actively contribute to.
- As told to Megan Gattey.