Two court cases this week have underlined how dangerous driving, by car or motorbike, can have the most devastating consequences.
On Monday, 18-year-old Gary Lewis was jailed for causing the death of Valerie Armstrong (35) as she walked her dog in Colin Glen Forest Park last summer.
Lewis, who was 17 at the time, swerved into the mother-of-three on a friend's scrambler as he tried to avoid hitting her dog.
This was a dreadful incident which caused widespread outrage and calls for tighter controls on the use of scramblers.
The anguish and pain caused to Mrs Armstrong's husband and three young children is incalculable.
And certainly, the 18-month sentence imposed on Lewis would seem to be a small punishment for a terrible crime.
But the judge was plainly of the view that Lewis had shown genuine remorse for his actions.
He stayed with Mrs Armstrong and pleaded guilty to causing death by dangerous driving.
Unusually, Lewis expressed a wish to be jailed saying that anything other than imprisonment would be disrespectful to the Armstrong family.
Meanwhile, a second young Belfast man is serving a prison term for a shocking collision that has also had profound repercussions.
Hugh McGrattan (25) was driving at speeds of up to 69mph when he lost control of his car and ploughed into a film crew in the Boucher Road area of the city in November 2015.
Five cast and crew members suffered serious injuries in the collision. One of them, a young woman who was running her own performing arts and dance business, has now been left in a wheelchair after sustaining spinal injuries.
The judge took into account McGrattan's remorse and early plea when sentencing him to four years and eight months, half of which will be spent on licence.
He can perhaps count himself fortunate he is not spending longer in prison, which many would consider justified in the circumstances.
But ultimately we need all drivers to heed the message of these two awful cases - and take care at all times.
