Thoughts on elderly drivers?

i’m 20 and to tell the truth if it was every other year i would not care to one bit. i think every year is bit much. just IMO.

 

If there's minimum age requirement, then there should be a maximum. Everybody knows that your reflexes, eyesight and other bodily functions deteriorate as you get older. What DMV won't tell you and aren't willing to give up is all that money they collect from having MORE people on the road. Also, don't forget about AARP. There are more of them who vote.

 

If you need a walker you don't need to be on the road ,

 

Tell that to all the handicapped veterans who have come back from Iraq and Afghanistan with their legs blown off.

 

We're talking about old people not vets

 

I definitely think that they should do testing starting at a certain age for things like knowledge of rules of the road, vision, and reaction time. I had a 90 year old woman pull out in front of me while I was doing 45mph. The only reason she didn't die on impact was because she had side curtain airbags. She ended up passing away the next morning from massive internal injuries.

 

I think everyone should be retested every 5 years. Lots of people need it.

 

Hogwash. Have you looked at the many videos of accidents on YouTube and similar sites, the vast majority involving non-elderly drivers?

Actually, if we want to reduce accidents, we should be looking harder at your age group. According to NHTSA's Traffic Safety Facts 2006 (latest 10-year study), those over age 74 accounted for only 95,000 of the crash deaths or injuries compared to 416,000 for the 16-20 age group. Those 65-74 accounted for 133,000. Thus, that small five year age group (16-20) accounted for nearly double the deaths or injuries of all those over 65 years old.

Moreover, based on those same nation-wide crash statistics, when compared to any other age group, seniors account for the lowest number of deaths or injuries on America's highways. Why place greater restrictions or hardships on those causing the least problems?

 

Giving older people a drivers test isn't going to solve anything.

They've been driving for years.....They know what the stops signs are, they just can't see them very good. They know how to merge, they just are slower to react in doing so.

If there's any TESTING of the elderly - it should be on motor skills, decision making, eyesight, and mental ability .... and that, is far more intense than a standard drivers test.

I'd be curious to know - of all the accidents - at what age group causes more of them?? I'll bet...it's not the elderly. Sure...they're annoyingly slow. But I'd rather pass a slow elderly person than BE passed by a frigin maniac kid going 20+ MPH faster than the rest of the traffic.

 

...senior drivers, ...teenage drivers, ...woman drivers... pick your poison

 

Older drivers should be retested. Driver drove across a lawn.


http://www.newjerseynewsroom.com/st...njuries-after-being-struck-by-car-in-vineland

 

Too bad the cop couldn't be a bit more harsh with the punishment.

 

I'd be okay with some sort of test, perhaps when they renew their license. To impose a specific blanket age restriction wouldn't be fair as all people are different. For example my grandmother is 81(actually just purchased a 2012 269hp Rav4 lol) and she drives fine. She doesn't look her age and she drives just fine and still had all her wits and is observant to what's going on. She also knows when to give up certain things when she no longer feels comfortable. She doesn't like highway or night driving so she has given that up. On the other hand I've seen younger elderly people who are absolutely terrible and dangerous behind the wheel.

 

I think old folks should be tested for the privilege to drive when the ignorant should be tested for the right to vote.

 

Agreed, and fair handed. A sizable portion of elderly drivers (now not all), at least according to media reports in Canada, have a slower reaction time than a drunk driver due to age and medication or a mixture of both. If a drunk shouldn't be on the road due to slowed reaction time and cogitative ability, why would we allow the elderly with a similar condition? So to make it fair for all, and to weed out the bad habits we all develop over time, testing every five years seems a evenhanded way to do it. And regardless of age, those on medications which should keep them off the roads should have their names forwarded to their local licensing office. I know that last one seems harsh... but if a member of your family was killed by someone on medication which should have precluded them from operating a motor vehicle, honestly ask yourself if the doctor shouldn't be made to take some responsibility for not looking out of the common good by allowing them to drive... not much different than the bartender waving to the drunk as he drives home.

Frank

 

Actual studies, as opposed to a few YouTube videos and inflammatory news reports, show that older drivers are oftentimes safer drivers.

http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/43758...-drivers-keep-kids-safer-crashes-study-finds/