Should the over 70's be banned from driving?
- Thread starter Gubbins
- Start date
No they shouldn't be banned just because they're 70. That would never happen, there would be an outcry.
But they should be retested. I've seen some shocking driving by the aged. Failing eyesight, failing cognitive skills and not judging speed of other vehicles can make some elderly drivers downright dangerous drivers. Because driving skills diminish slowly when drivers get older, they are the last to notice anything is wrong.
My Father carried on driving well into his dementia, believing he was ok..... when i could see he certainly should not have been on the road. Finally got him to give up, but it was a difficult job to get him to do so.
Retest at about 75 i'd say.
But they should be retested. I've seen some shocking driving by the aged. Failing eyesight, failing cognitive skills and not judging speed of other vehicles can make some elderly drivers downright dangerous drivers. Because driving skills diminish slowly when drivers get older, they are the last to notice anything is wrong.
My Father carried on driving well into his dementia, believing he was ok..... when i could see he certainly should not have been on the road. Finally got him to give up, but it was a difficult job to get him to do so.
Retest at about 75 i'd say.
Re-test everyone every three years, that would remove about half on the road each time.
No, it won't happen since the facts don't support such a move. There are other age groups far more dangerous and others with similar accident rates. That's why insurers are almost all completely happy to continue insuring elderly drivers with no additions to their premiums.
As Yamdude said, there are the odd shocking examples of old drivers, but there are equally shocking drivers in other age groups. Those in younger age groups are often travelling very much faster so can cause far more damage when they come unstuck.
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If any justification could be dragged up for banning the over 70s, then you would find the same in spades full for the under 30s.
That could prove costly... especially for those without a good pension..
I believe that you need to reapply for a new licence when you reach 70 , so it follows that your should also be reevaluated for your driving skills too ,this need not be a full road test, and could be done via a computer test ,much like the current one used for new drivers, but I am not saying it follows that all septunugieans are not safe drivers, also retest younger drivers too,i think that too many do not think about car usage enough for short journeys, so weeding a few out maybe to the good.
A session at the local library should suffice, plus a small fee
A session at the local library should suffice, plus a small fee
I almost ticked "agree" with Croxden's post, but I'm replying instead to qualify my reasoning a bit more.
I'm almost 70, and I would be bl**dy annoyed if there was a blanket ban on driving after that age.
Many pensioners are as sharp as a pin right up to the final curtain, and are often a damn sight better drivers than many "young" or "middle" aged drivers.
I do agree with Yamdude though, over 70's (including me then) should be retested, because many do indeed suffer from somewhat faded reactions.
As for retesting everyone every three years, the idea has some merit, but it would unnecessarily burden the majority of motorists, who thankfully are competent. It would also get well bogged down with administrative costs and government department empire building.
The danger of course us that one is honestly unaware ones declining driving skills. My step father was a mobile accident waiting to happen but wouldn't accept it until he very nearly mowed down a group of kids by pressing the go pedal instead of stop in a powerful automatic.
It's not just simple reapplication via a D1 form, instead a D46P form must be completed in which declarations of health status questions have to be completed. Any deliberately false anmswers mean invalidation of ones licence and insurance, so the consequences can be serious. Health problems can result in a medical examination being required before a licence is renewed.
Then the licence renewal has to be done every three years thereafter, so the system is not without safeguards. And as I said above, why pick on older drivers when there are other age groups whose record is far more dangerous?
The fact is that much of the complaining about older drivers is due to them often being slower and irritating the more impatient road users. Tough, it's the impatient who cause the accidents and who need to learn patience and tolerance on the roads.
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Full licences have to be renewed once every ten years until the driver is 75. Drivers must then renew their drivers licence on their 75th birthday, 80th birthday, and every second birthday after that.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Driving_licence_in_New_Zealand
Damned civilized country if you ask me, but then I would be biased. Read at the bottom about the oldest driver...
But I have been living in France for most of my life and here it is "you can have it back if you can pry it from my dead fingers!". We confiscated my sons great grandmothers licence (and car) when we got too scared and while there was still some unmarked bodywork. The worst kind of accident is where the SOF (silly old fool) drives off oblivious to the carnage caused by someone trying to miss them when they have done something wrong.
I once followed a man for quite some distance and he would only overtake on solid white lines. He must have found it more convenient, nobody else was passing in those blind bends and hill crests... As soon as he pulled out all the other cars braked pulled well over to the side and let him pass
And you have the sweet old thing going to the market in first gear, at 50 km/h... Her garage loves her.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Driving_licence_in_New_Zealand
Damned civilized country if you ask me, but then I would be biased. Read at the bottom about the oldest driver...
But I have been living in France for most of my life and here it is "you can have it back if you can pry it from my dead fingers!". We confiscated my sons great grandmothers licence (and car) when we got too scared and while there was still some unmarked bodywork. The worst kind of accident is where the SOF (silly old fool) drives off oblivious to the carnage caused by someone trying to miss them when they have done something wrong.
I once followed a man for quite some distance and he would only overtake on solid white lines. He must have found it more convenient, nobody else was passing in those blind bends and hill crests... As soon as he pulled out all the other cars braked pulled well over to the side and let him pass
And you have the sweet old thing going to the market in first gear, at 50 km/h... Her garage loves her.
Yes, it would be a great way of thinning out the traffic on our roads.
Not the entirely responsible and capable over 80's though.
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Yes ,some are just too impatient, today a bus had to stop because there wasn't enough room to go through ,the car in front of me started playing a single note tune on his/her car horn,whilst a taxi driver was helping a disabled fare out of the car,fair enough, I thought, further down the road is a box junction before traffic lights, in front of ambulance stn, someone stopped before crossing ,there was a small amount of room the other side, so Mr. Impatient begins his 2nd Symphony,harrasing the driver, who hesitantly crosses on the yellow,impatient stops for the red, an what do you know then stalls when he gets the go,reminded by our Bus driver that lights are green.
I try to be a calm ,patient driver whenever behind the wheel,no matter what had wound me up during the day , the end game is I am in control of lethal machine,it is well that every motorist bears that in mind
I, like many others, do have issues that affect my driving. I have always been of the opinion that when driving the feeling of control is illusory and the worst driver of all is one that thinks they are perfect....
But... if I were told I had to stop driving.. this would be devastating on so many levels... it's hard to imagine how life would continue, but of course it would and I would adjust, but I can see why people continue driving when past their sell by date..
But... if I were told I had to stop driving.. this would be devastating on so many levels... it's hard to imagine how life would continue, but of course it would and I would adjust, but I can see why people continue driving when past their sell by date..
I think everyone should prepare for driving to cease with inability due to age to reduce the impact when that day arrives. Ever since the early 70's I've been prepared for the fact that one day I won't be up to it. I regularly checked my eyesight was up to scratch and when in 2013 I started occasionally having difficulty matching the requirement for number plate reading, I arranged for cataract operations in both eyes. As a result my eyesight is now better than it was when I was young.
So now I keep an eye on my reaction times since that is where one day they may not be good enough, though no problem at present.
Once that does show signs of a problem the car goes and from then it's mainly taxis. I can easily afford the few times I'll need them and we have two local minicab companies who provide a good shuttle service for the local supermarkets. Almost all other shopping I do online anyway.
My four year older brother has preceded me with this, giving up his car just over a year ago after finding coping with traffic increasingly difficult.
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I read somewhere and can't remember the exact details but it was to do with pensioners becoming confused when driving with the radio on too loud.
It concluded that the brain doesn't slow down as such, but it's sensor inputs do and as they (ears,eyes etc) become impaired through age the brain has to work that much harder to sort everything out and can't multitask as easily giving the impression of delayed reactions..
It concluded that the brain doesn't slow down as such, but it's sensor inputs do and as they (ears,eyes etc) become impaired through age the brain has to work that much harder to sort everything out and can't multitask as easily giving the impression of delayed reactions..
Yes a real danger, but not applying to me. I'm on record in this forum and elsewhere for being totally opposed to all in-car entertainment and wishing cars weren't automatically supplied with it. The Radio/CD/MP3 player in my car is never switched on, I've never learnt what it's multiplicity of buttons is for. I'm also opposed to hands free phone usage and think the authorities mad to permit it.
I maintain that the only way to drive is with all one's attention on what is outside the glass,
I do use a satnav, but out of my line of sight and on voice only, since that is far safer than peering at road direction signs which are often obscured or poorly placed.
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