take the wheel

take the wheel

To take or assume control (of something). After the CEO announced that she had been diagnosed with dementia, her daughter gradually began taking the wheel of the company. I don't know why people are so utterly terrified of letting the federal government take the wheel when it comes to things like healthcare.
See also: take, wheel
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms.

take the ˈwheel

start to drive a car, replacing somebody else: When we got halfway, Sarah took the wheel and I had a rest.
See also: take, wheel
Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary
See also:
  • come to heel
  • thick on the ground
  • thick/thin on the ground
  • cook the books
  • cook the accounts
  • a/the fish rots from the head down
  • a/the fish stinks from the head down
  • be had up (for something)
  • drop into (one's) lap
  • drop/fall into somebody's lap
References in classic literature
He could promise me that she shouldn't take the wheel out of his hands.
For a moment I thought I had better ask him to take the wheel. But the dreadful knowledge of the enemy he had to carry about him made me hesi- tate.
The Shadow Line
At each event people will be able literally to take the wheel as they race in a camper van rally simulator, which I think is going to provide a lot of fun and enjoyment.
Mental health services must be at the heart of candidates' assurances
By day, a mine should be obvious at 100 yards or more Kochrekar even lets me take the wheel while he goes below for breakfast.
The Strait of Hommus; there's more to the Persian Gulf war than geopolitics, a report from the scene