When should the driving privileges of senior, elderly drivers be restricted or revoked?? It’s an age old question (pardon the pun), but it’s also a fiery debate that get’s reignited whenever a traffic calamity involving a senior driver at fault makes the news. Should it be when they turn 70?…maybe 80? Should any 100 year old drivers be allowed on the road?
The reality is, drivers 35 to 54 years old are the real problem on our roads. They cause over 17,000 fatalities a year. Finishing at a close second place… 21 to 34 years old…killing 15,057 people annually, according to the National Center for Statistics and Analysis, a division of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
But it’s the real life drama of tragic stories that get our attention because they make the news.
Medical issues more important than age
Director of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s AgeLab, Joseph Coughlin, says:
But two-thirds of people 65 and older take five or more medications every day that can affect driving ability. The side effects of taking an antihistamine or antidepressant may not be noticeable to people in their 40s, who as they age may then ignore warning signs.
Even worse, older drivers tend to have the highest death rates in car crashes versus their more accident-prone younger counterparts. The rates steadily rise as drivers age…80+ year olds are almost four times more likely to be killed in a car crash than 50-year-olds. But the reason goes beyond drug issues: older, more feeble bodies with more brittle bones and weaker tissue.
Indications that something is wrong
Clearly, how to determine if and when an elderly driver you know…is no longer capable of safely controlling a car…is a sensitive and complicated issue. But they are conversations need to be engaged long before problems crop up.
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