A new Canadian is hoping to turn a tragic life experience into an opportunity to make the roads of his new home province safer.
“I had a friend who died in a driving impaired accident, and I was analyzing it from all perspectives, and I was thinking, ‘What could prevent that?'” Ivan Veselov said.
Nearly three years ago, Veselov immigrated to Nova Scotia from Russia and decided to start his new life chapter with a business venture built on reducing road tragedies like the one that happened to his friend.
“I came up with the idea that if he had a chance for someone to be driving him, that could possibly save his life and the well-being of his family,” he said.
That’s when he came up with a business idea called Pass The Keys Driving Services Inc., which gives people the option of getting home safe from a night out without having to leave their vehicle behind.
“A driver comes to your place, we’ll drive your vehicle to a bar, or a restaurant, or bar hopping, and he stays with the car and then returns you back home,” Veselov said.
He says another service is designed for people who are already out and end up becoming too impaired to drive themselves home.
“A team of two drivers will come to the place where you are, we’ll drive you and your car back home,” he said.
In October, Halifax Regional Police charged 21 people with impaired driving. Police state 13 drivers were at least two times over the legal limit.
Veselov hopes his driving service encourages people to consider safer transportation options than getting behind their wheel while impaired.
“I believe that passing the keys is the right thing to do when you’re impaired and thinking of driving,” he said.
Veselov has a roster of drivers who are also new Canadians and he says safety also comes into effect through their screening process.
“They have to have at least three years of full driving experience, clean driver’s abstract, criminal record check and child abuse registry check. So, they’re fully screened and confident on the road,” he said.
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