Should the elderly retake their driving test?

Jazzy1

Jazzy1

Got A Cracker?
Location
Adirondack Region NY
At what age do you think it should be mandatory for the elderly to have to take a road test again to ensure they are safe on the road? Or do you disagree with the premise all together?
 

NO! Absolutely not! It's the younger ones that need to retake their driving tests. We are not the ones that drive after drinking and/or taking drugs. Slow drivers are safe drivers. I'm not a slow driver. I usually drive 60 mph, when the speed limit is 55 mph. I never drive faster. I never drive slower than the speed limit. Especially when the speed limit is 30 mph. We can read speed limit signs.
 
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I think it would be great for everyone but me! šŸ˜‰šŸ¤­šŸ˜‚

Iā€™m not sure if the benefits would outweigh the bureaucracy.

A few additional steps to the annual Medicare Wellness Exam, Annual Physical, Eye Exam, etcā€¦ along with a reporting requirement might be a thought.

I worry about people like my older sister that can barely walk who are still driving. She is a good driver but Iā€™m not comfortable that her reaction time is as good as it should be in the event of an emergency.
 

Aunt Bea said:
Iā€™m not sure if the benefits would outweigh the bureaucracy.

A few additional steps to the annual Medicare Wellness Exam, Annual Physical, Eye Exam, etcā€¦ along with a reporting requirement might be a thought.

I worry about people like my older sister that can barely walk who are still driving. She is a good driver but Iā€™m not comfortable that her reaction time is as good as it should be in the event of an emergency.
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Not sure I want my doctor being required to rat on me to the govt. even more than they do now. Personally I think that everyone should have at least a written driving test every 5-10 years in order to get their license. If you fail that then an actual driving test might be in order. Of course I am from Massachusetts where we have the worst drivers in the country. None of these idiots should have a license. :)
 
There are some older drivers that were a POS driver when they were young and never should have been driving. Sadly they donā€™t see themselvesā€”ā€”- nor do they see or care about the scratches I find on my car when I come out of the store.

Then thereā€™s those young people who canā€™t see to back up, even with a rear camera and STILL backed into my car at the doctorā€™s office because the dumbā€”ā€” was on her cell phone.

Stupid drivers abound regardless of age and no amount of taking the driving test over is going to help them.

That was my long/venting answer to say ā€œno, donā€™t waste everyoneā€™s timeā€.

Eye tests are more beneficial IMHO.
 
A driving test wouldn't reveal any momentary lapses in vision or cognitive function that become more of a risk as we age.
Heart attack or stroke also presents risks.

Driving as we age is a potential crap shoot.

Someone mentioned drivers today. They make it more dangerous when they disobey traffic control and do what they want as if no other drivers were on the road.

They're installing cameras trained on the driver nowadays. That might be the least intrusive and easiest solution to the problem of an aged driver who fails to maintain control of their vehicle.
At least the lawyers can make a case based on recorded evidence should a tragic accident should occur.

EDIT:
As I think about the reasons for testing both the mental and physical state of aging drivers, it is clear that the reason for testing is to remove, from the road, the obstinate person who ignores the warning signs and decides to drive anyway. So we must all be willing to take whatever tests are required to remain on the road.
 
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Jazzy1 said:
At what age do you think it should be mandatory for the elderly to have to take a road test again to ensure they are safe on the road? Or do you disagree with the premise all together?
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In my state from the age of 80 I have to submit an annual medical certificate to the licensing authority to prove that I am still safe to hold a drivers' licence. From 85 I will be required to pass a driving test as well.

If I don't want to do the test, I can elect to have a restricted licence that will allow me to continue driving within a restricted radius from my home. As an old age pensioner, I do not have to pay for my drivers' licence.

To register my car I do not have to pay the registration fee, but I do need to submit a certificate of road worthiness from an auto mechanic as well as a certificate from an insurance company to show that I have bought third party insurance. These two certificates are the only costs that I must pay.

I think both requirements are very reasonable.
 
I'm sure I'd flunk it for the same reason I failed it twice when I was young -- parallel parking. After that test 50 years ago, I never had to parallel park again.

I say "No." I think I'm a better driver, in spite of being old and slow and sitting too long at green lights -- than all the young people, speeding, drinking,* texting and changing lanes.

*Not just alcohol but their pressing need to "stay hydrated" every moment of the day.
 
Driving ability is not about age but patience and ability to think behind the wheel.
I think re-tests maybe based on accidents/ tickets on random on many drivers.
Beside the bureaucracy and the cost ......Some people who do not pass will drive anyway i have never saw a car start only if you have a valid license.
When my grandma was older in my area it was hard to get state to agree with us ....she should NOT be on the road anymore. Some families know if their family member should give license up but do not want to be the one to sign the documents or start the process.

Testing is a way to pass blame on the license ( gov) agency that TOOK their license away .... even if you know they are MR or Mrs Magoo.
 
The more I thought about the more retesting wasn't the way to go. A road test is designed to see how well your basic driving skills are. It is not designed to evaluate your mental/physical fitness to drive. I think most could pass the basic driving test, after driving for decades, but that doesn't necessarily mean they should be behind the wheel. If is test is for competency of the "elderly", since the aging process is a continuing one, you'd have test every month or at least quite frequently. And since all humans are subject to medical problems, that could impede their driving, you could have monthly road tests for everybody. And there's a fat chance in hell that will happen.
 
Paladin1950 said:
NO! Absolutely not! It's the younger ones that need to retake their driving tests. We are not the ones that drive after drinking and/or taking drugs. Slow drivers are safe drivers. I'm not a slow driver. I usually drive 60 mph, when the speed limit is 55 mph. I never drive faster. I never drive slower than the seped limit. Especially when the speed limit is 30 mph. We can read speed limit signs.
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You're Goddamn Right. In have 62 years of experiance, 64 if you count the 2 years I had my restricted license (what's called a learner's permit these days) and I'm a better safer driver than 99 and 44/100 percent of the young yayhoos out there on the road today. :mad:
 
My mom was still driving at 95. Her eyesight and reaction time were excellent and her night vision beat the heck out of mine.

She loved to drive and I always felt safe with her.

My aunt, on the other hand, was getting to be a hazard. Somebody (we suspect it was her doctor), ratted her out and she had received a notice that she was going to have to come in for testing. She was madder than a wet hen.
 
Trade said:
You're Goddamn Right. In have 62 years of experiance, 64 if you count the 2 years I had my restricted license (what's called a learner's permit these days) and I'm a better safer driver than 99 and 44/100 percent of the young yayhoos out there on the road today. :mad:
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šŸ’Æ
I think it's safe to say that most here took Driver's Education(classroom) and Driver's Training(behind the wheel-on the road) when we were in high school. There were even driving simulators that we used at the school. After a lifetime of steering, operating gas-break and clutch pedals and gear shifter, changing lanes safely, and parking, people our age are proficient in the manual manipulation of the automobile.

Younger people nowadays drive like the only driver training they got was by playing the video game Grand Theft Auto. That said, I don't think it's a bad thing to have a written refresher test every so often, as driving laws and regulations do change, and as a reminder of the conventional driving wisdom. Last year I had to renew my license, being over 70 it is required to take the written test, appear in-person at the DMV to get a mug shot and thumb print. The written test was online, more like an open book test actually. I didn't realize that the online session was the test, thought it was refresher study.
 
I think that reaction & reflex times slow down as part of the aging process and those are very important parts of driving ability. Also, it's been proven that peripheral vision in the human eye starts to go downhill at the age of 50, and that's got to have an effect too. Too bad that too many countries don't give a darn about transportation needs of those that don't/can't/want to own a car.
 
officerripley said:
I think that reaction & reflex times slow down as part of the aging process and those are very important parts of driving ability. Also, it's been proven that peripheral vision in the human eye starts to go downhill at the age of 50, and that's got to have an effect too. Too bad that too many countries don't give a darn about transportation needs of those that don't/can't/want to own a car.
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This is right for sure. For this reason I underwent by choice a medical test for passenger transportation at age 59 since I had to drive children to school in the morning and back in the afternoon with a minibus (driver and 8 passengers). This test was not obligatory since it was a private company, but I did it nevertheless. Not only medical parameters were tested but also vision, hearing ability, responsiveness, performance in complex situations and so on. I passed the test. Most of my colleagues (all of them seniors) didn't even do the test.
 
I watched my mother become an unsafe driver - eventually my brother removed the distributor cap from her car and left a note under the hood to AAA or whomever she might consult, saying something like "Please don't fix this car. My mother is no longer a safe driver but still has her license. Please tell her it will need to be towed to a shop. If she asks to have it towed, please call S** at xxx.xxx.xxxx before arranging it."

Mom's reaction time was less than in younger years, but scarier still was decreased ability to filter out unimportant distractions and remain focused on the road.
 
StarSong said:
I watched my mother become an unsafe driver - eventually my brother removed the distributor cap from her car and left a note under the hood to AAA or whomever she might consult, saying something like "Please don't fix this car. My mother is no longer a safe driver but still has her license. Please tell her it will need to be towed to a shop. If she asks to have it towed, please call S** at xxx.xxx.xxxx before arranging it."

Mom's reaction time was less than in younger years, but scarier still was decreased ability to filter out unimportant distractions and remain focused on the road.
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I quit 2 years ago, for those very reasons. I decided on my own & didn't need reminders from my kids.
 
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