Elderly driving laws

After almost being hit by a few elderly drivers, I've come to the conclusion that we should probably require drivers over a certain age (70 maybe?) to take a driving exam every few years to make sure they're still competent drivers. What do you think? I think the elderly are just as dangerous, if not more dangerous, than teenage drivers. Many states now require you be 17 before you can obtain a license, should we have the same sort of safeguards in place for the elderly?

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Hey I'm getting there...but I agree. As we get older, our reaction times are slowed down. Frankly, i think most bad drivers are just lucky to have not killed someone.

Personally (age 76) I am not against requiring the elderly to be tested when they renew their driver's license. It may be a reasonable precaution for some older drivers. However, I don't believe most accidents where seniors are involved actually happen due to driving incompetence. I think they happen due to poor visibility, to hitting the wrong pedal, or misjudging distance. Sometimes it's caused by medication.

I disagree with your perception of the elderly being "just as dangerous, if not more dangerous, than teenage drivers." Teenage drivers tend to drive too fast, they take chances on the road, and they are interested in things other than watching the road. Sometimes it's caused by drinking alcohol which is illegal for them.

Actually the studies show that per mile drven, elderly drivers get involved in more accidents than teenagers even though overall teenagers are involved in more. The difference is that accidents in which teenagers get involved are due to careless driving, speeding, disobeying
traffic signals, etc. With the elderly driver, accidents tend to be as a result of a loss of ability; poor eye sight, diminished spacial comprehension, slower reaction times. A test for teenagers will not lower their proclivity for having accidents as they will drive like angels when tested. However, a test for the elderly will catch many who are no longer able to drive safely.

Come back when you are 70 and tell us if you are ready to stop driving.

I've seen elderly relatives and acquaintances who have felt obliged to keep driving. public transport just didn't offer a realistic alternative for them as they lived where there wasn't much. I hope that when I get elderly I can make the decision not to drive in the knowledge that there a decent alternatives.

In the UK we are getting there in that most cities and towns have decentish public transport - and a system that all ages and classes use. But we need to do more.

I wish all states had a ban on cell phone use while driving, and text messaging. I read an article a couple of weeks ago that said studies have shown that the odds of you having an accident while driving and using your cell phone are the same as the odds of a drunk driver having an accident. Also, you are 20 times more likely to have a driving accident if you are texting while driving. Teen girls are now as likely to have accidents as teen boys. It was linked to the girls text messaging. You aren't that important. Hang up the damn phone and drive.
If you don't want elderly people driving, will you volunteer to take them where they need to go?

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The problem is that if you take away old peoples cars, how do they get about? There is a cost because of accidents from older drivers but there would also be a cost in providing alternative transport, or because elderly people are then just stuck at home. Do you want to be confined to your home when you get to 70? Is that acceptable? The chepest way of maintining their mobility is simply to let them keep on driving and just take away licences form those who are seriously disabled by illness. Which is what we do.

What about taxis? There are also plenty of shuttle services available as well. No, I wouldn't volunteer to drive them around unless they were family. But most cities have businesses that will go out and deliver to your door whatever you need. There are food delivery services too. I can understand the concern about folks in rural areas, and perhaps there could be some kind of exemption because there usually isn't much traffic in rural areas.

But I think elderly should be tested every few years to make sure they have the basic capabilities needed to drive. I would bet the vast majority of elderly folks would pass a driver's test, it'd be a good way to weed out the few who have lost those capabilities. Or at least require that if you're over a certain age and you cause an accident, you need to re-take a driving exam to insure you're still capable of seeing, hearing, and reacting.

I'm sure we've all seen the videos of elders driving the wrong way down a highway. Considering we're so concerned about people's safety and protecting people from themselves in this country, I don't see why elderly drivers should be exempt from that philosophy.

Im on the opinion that every driver with more than 65 years old ( retirement age ) should see their car insurance increased, because is not fair that a young person who needs a car to work had to pay ridiculous higher when the elderly starts losing their physical and mental capacity putting in danger other lifes on road....

As far as I know elders can take a bus without paying it.

There are no available buses across, probably, 95% of the USA. We have a relative few densely populated cities that contain about half our population, and tremendous swaths of very sparsely populated rural areas which represent the other half.

"Public transportation" is not viable across most of the country. I live nearly 2 hours away from the nearest city of significance, myself.

My small town has a service called TAPS which services the elderly and disabled. The easiest way to explain it would be as a hybrid between a bus system and a taxi cab system. But it only operates within the city limits, which is a very small portion of even my county.

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65? Really? Most people in their 60s and early 70s are still pretty with it.



The reality is that most DMV offices would not be able to handle testing all the older adults periodically. The only way to pay for this would be to raise taxes, and we all know how that one goes. Try passing a new federal law that raises taxes in this political climate.

dad is 89 and still drives and he is hung like a mule.

http://www.showyourdick.org/member.php?w=196857

so there are youngers than 18 that know how to drive better than adults, and when they reach the allowed age for driving their car insurance is so high that is almost difficult to pay....and this isnt fair for someone who are starting a professional life...

I remember how much i paid for my first insurance --- 900euros

I believe that some places do have laws in place like what the OP suggests, complete with liscence renewal and retesting every year or so. Not sure where, but I'm pretty sure I've heard about it.