Road safety messages aren’t cutting through and people continue to die – but Holly Scott’s message can save lives

SA’s road toll is soaring as police despair that road safety messages aren’t cutting through. That’s why we’re sharing the story of Holly Scott – and want SA drivers to take notice.

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There is a line in Driven: The Journey of Holly Scott where Sgt Joe McDonald, from Mount Baker police, laments that he “doesn’t see a change”.

“I think most people have become almost immune to it,” Sgt McDonald says.

The “it” he’s referring to is the road safety message. By change, he’s talking about how we drive on our roads. Whether it’s hard-hitting images of people left behind or quirky angles such as the Hairy Fairy, the current road toll suggests we aren’t heeding the message and, for whatever reason, are not taking enough care when we get behind the wheel.

For us at the Sunday Mail and The Advertiser, it is sadly a story that never goes away. It can often feel like our reporting and campaigns fall on deaf ears – this year’s road toll is among one of our worst.

We need to find ways to cut through constant noise around road safety and get the message home that crashes can happen to anyone, anywhere, and every one of them changes the lives of so many.

So when the Lifetime Support Authority told us about Holly Scott, we listened. Here was a tale very different to the ones we were used to telling. A tale of near tragedy, of courage, of community, of love and support, and of hope.

A tale that captures the enormous impact just one moment can have. And a tale that is not yet over. Holly’s life is still being put back together, years after it changed forever.

The story of Holly Scott’s recovery from a life-threatening crash is harrowing – but also inspirational. Picture: Matt Turner

We wanted to tell Holly’s story in a way that was different, to ensure her story was not just another road safety message. We wanted to make it impossible for it to fall on deaf ears. Together with SA Police and the Lifetime Support Authority, we tracked down all the people involved in Holly’s remarkable journey from the first emergency services on the scene of her crash, to the doctors who operated on her, to those now supporting her as she puts her life back together, to her family and friends who have never left her side. Today the Sunday Mail and The Advertiser proudly launch a seven-part web-documentary series – researched, written, filmed, edited and produced in-house – with each part to be released every day at 7am.

Shocking images like this fatal accident on the Dukes Highway this month have become depressingly common. We hope sharing the story of a crash survivor will make SA motorists rethink their risky driving behaviours. Picture: Dean Martin/AAP

Driven is the flagship of our titles’ year-long Enough is Enough campaign. It will be partnered by stories every day in print and online and it has its own website, advertiser.com.au/driven. Driven is given to our audience for free, in the hope that as many of you as possible see it. It will also be used by police in Year 11 classes in SA schools next year.

We encourage you to watch it with your family, friends and colleagues. Discuss it and ask yourselves: “Will it make you more aware on our roads this holiday season?”

The inspirational Holly Scott trusted us to tell her story – and we trust her story will give you pause for thought.

It may even mean police such as Sgt McDonald begin to notice a change for the better.

The Driven series of videos and reports is free online for all readers. Please consider supporting our journalism with a subscription – find more information here.