Not much compares to the sinking feeling you get when the red and blue lights flash in your rear view mirror and you know you’ve been speeding. You try be polite, and bite your tongue, and don’t say or do anything that will make the experience any worse than it has to be. But you know you’re going to get a ticket, and that’s just a bummer.

Texas law enforcement is trying to change all that by pulling over safe drivers and handing them a gift card for those who practice good defensive driving whether they learned their skills in a defensive driving course or on their own through trial and error (though the former is easier.)

That’s right–instead of just handing out speeding tickets, the cops in Texas are handing out presents to drivers they catch who are doing the right things behind the wheel. Instead of setting up speed-traps the Texas police have been setting up “safety observation zones” where they can observe drivers who are taking the right precautions. It might be a school zone, where busy mom’s and dad’s often forget to securely buckle up a child before speeding away. Or it might be a busy intersection where drivers often get distracted and speed through caution lights or yield signs.

In Texas right now, anyplace where there is an opportunity to catch a driver doing something right, there is likely a police officer waiting to reward them for it. All the drivers need to do is drive defensively; be safe behind the wheel and set a good example for others to follow, and they have a chance at being rewarded.
With a program like this in place maybe the sight of red and blue lights in your rear view mirror won’t make you cringe in terror, but cross your fingers that you’ll be rewarded for being an excellent defensive driver.