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Lucy Mehrtens is a SADD alumna.

Lucy Mehrtens is a SADD alumna. Photo by Guy Frederick.

Celebrating SADD's 40th anniversary

We look at the history of SADD – Students Against Dangerous Driving – as the organisation marks a 40 year-year milestone

Ask Lucy Mehrtens why she joined SADD as a high school student back in 2005 and her answer is simple: “I just didn’t want any of my mates to die in a crash.”

Fast forward two decades and Lucy is continuing to fly the SADD flag as Road Safety Coordinator for Tīmaru District Council. Her motivation remains the same as when she was a SADD student leader, only now she’s working alongside the charity reduce risk on New Zealand roads.

“I’ve always been passionate about road safety because I don’t ever want to see anyone make the wrong choice,” Lucy says.

SADD’s vision is to empower young Kiwis to prevent loss on our roads, together. It’s this strong sense of student-led unity, Lucy says, that’s paramount to SADD’s longstanding success. Students and schools work alongside national road safety organisations, including the AA, towards the goal of reducing harm on the roads and improving the wellbeing of young New Zealanders.  

“I call us The SADD Team. Fire and Emergency NZ, Police, St John, Council: we’ve all got our different areas, but we work together. We’ve got good wraparound support, so if there’s ever a crash, we’ve got a team ready to respond and provide help to all those involved.

“Obviously SADD wants to avoid crashes happening altogether, but my goal is that if something does happen, students can reach out. If someone’s nervous about putting their hand up and raising an issue, they can ask one of us.”

Lucy Mehrtens, Road Safety Coordinator at Timaru District Council..
Lucy Mehrtens, Road Safety Coordinator at Timaru District Council. Photo by Guy Frederick.

SADD began in Massachusetts in 1981. In 1985, it was introduced to New Zealand by an American exchange student at Mahurangi College in Warkworth after a spate of drink driving accidents in the region.

Back then, SADD stood for Students Against Driving Drunk and was initially supported by Rotary. Momentum grew, and by the late 1980s, SADD had become a national organisation with resources sent to every secondary school in New Zealand. Today, more than 200 schools are involved in SADD, the only student-led road safety education organisation in Australasia.

The charity holds annual national conferences and regional workshops with thousands of Kiwi students contributing over the years.

SADD General Manager Donna Govorko says the organisation has recently changed gear to encompass the bigger-picture challenges young people face on the road.  

SADD General Manager Donna Govorko.
SADD General Manager Donna Govorko. Photo by Monica Tischler.

“This includes peer pressure, driving distracted and managing fatigue. SADD also encourages and supports young people on their driver licence journey, so that anyone who drives on our roads is equipped with the necessary skills and knowledge to be safe drivers,” she says.

“After recognising the positive effects of the SADD’s work, we realised that we could change other behaviours, too. We saw a culture shift from fear tactics to positive influencing, and working with young people on what they can do to make constructive changes.” 

SADD Operations Manager Victoria Domigan says the organisation has introduced four programme aspirations: safe vehicles, safe road users, sharing our roads and the driver licence journey. In 2022, the te reo Māori phrase ‘Kaitiaki o Ora’ was woven into the brand name, translating to ‘guardians of the path, or journey’.

“It’s about empowering youth to be in control of their own destinies,” Victoria says.

Through working closely with rangatahi, Lucy knows that the future of SADD is in capable hands. “SADD is vital in New Zealand communities. The benefit is that those who are involved are already wanting to promote that road safety message. They’re already converted and talking to those who aren’t. Mates talking to mates makes a difference.” 

SADD’s vision is to empower young Kiwis to prevent loss on our roads.
SADD’s vision is to empower young Kiwis to prevent loss on our roads.

SADD is backed by the AA

The AA plays a pivotal role in SADD’s nationwide reach. AA Driving School and AA’s Transport Policy and Advocacy team work closely with SADD and student leaders to achieve the shared goal of improving road safety.

AA Chief Policy and Advocacy Officer and SADD Board Trustee Simon Douglas says it’s this symbiotic relationship that is an effective platform from which to reinforce road safety.

“If the AA just stood at its big yellow lectern and told young people what they should do the key messages wouldn’t get traction."

“Young people are still the highest risk group on the roads by far, so we need to have that connection with youth,” he says. “The advantage of SADD is that with support from the AA and New Zealand Transport Agency as sponsors, Donna and her team can provide the framework that allows the students to engage, using evidence and best practice to understand what’s going on in the road safety space.”

Simon says that having a youth voice at board level is crucial, and a youth representative, usually drawn from SADD’s National Leaders Programme, attends every meeting.  

“It’s brought a great perspective to the table.”

Road safety among youth will continue to be a focus for the foreseeable future and the AA is committed to keeping SADD funded and functioning.

Story by Monica Tischler for the Autumn 2025 issue of AA Directions Magazine. Monica Tischler is the Deputy Editor of AA Directions Magazine.