ABSTRACT
A call for innovative ideas led to the funding by the Department for Transport in 2009 of a project called Wheels, Skills and Thrills 1 (WST1). Led by Alan Tapp, this project worked alongside a community developer and with a group of young men from one of the most deprived areas in Bristol and ran from 2010–11. Young men, particularly those suffering the greatest social disadvantage, are better able to deflect such appeals. Deprivation typically has a multiplying effect on youth and gender with the influence on driving of disruptive behaviours, emotional disturbance, poor anger management, increased short-termism and living for the moment, and increased recklessness and thrill seeking. The team felt that advanced driver training held promise, but that a new approach was needed. Tackling risky driving by young men from deprived areas has proven extremely difficult. Cultural capital re-design focused on skills that were of interest to the cohort while also addressing deficiencies.
