We are all getting older, including everyone with a driver’s license.
During the past 35 years, the number of motorists over the age of 70 has exceeded the growth rate of the overall driver population by a factor of three.
Those over 65 represent the fastest growing demographic in the land. The Baby Boomer generation is deep into retirement age and by 2025 almost one quarter of the entire population of the country will be over 65.
This huge group of drivers will be in better health, live longer and be more confident and experienced at the wheel than was the case only a decade or two ago.
They will be accustomed to driving long distances and spending lengthy periods at the wheel. As a rule, older drivers are more cautious and rarely show up on the aggressive driving radar.
But they do tend to make more mistakes in heavy traffic, and are thus over-represented in accident incident reports.
A variety of factors contribute to decreased ability as we age, vision chief among them. The common test used in driver examinations is static acuity — the ability to focus on a fixed object.
The problem with aging is a decrease in dynamic acuity — the ability to stay focused on a moving object.
There are also issues with visual memory and perception, an increased susceptibility to glare and reduced contrast sensitivity.
Only about one third as much light reaches the receptors in the eyes of a 65-year-old, as that of a 20 year-old. Hearing also deteriorates with age, especially the ability to distinguish between sounds.
Decreased reaction times rank right up there with visual issues. Basically it takes about one-third of a second longer for a 65 year-old to physically react than a 25 year-old.
That is a distance of about 10 meters at highway speeds i.e. a 65 year-old, when confronted with an emergency situation will travel 33 feet further than a 25 year-old before reacting — hitting the brake or turning the wheel.
Mature drivers are also plagued with reduced flexibility, fatigue, arthritis and other health problems and are frequently on several medications which might affect their abilities.
We know these issues. What we don’t know, is an acceptable answer. There is very little public transportation in most of this vast nation and the huge group of drivers moving into their retirement years is not about to stop driving.
There is a need for everyone from legislators to traffic engineers and vehicle manufacturers to address the issue.
As mature drivers we can do a number of things to reduce risk, from limiting our night time exposure and avoiding glare, to reducing in-vehicle distractions and making sure we are visible to others.
As a rule, mature drivers are eager to do whatever it takes to maintain their mobility and independence. Given the tools to assess their health and limitations, they take appropriate actions.
Traffic engineers are trying to make signage more visible and roadways safer. Regulators should look at the need for different test procedures and equipment — for all drivers, including more elaborate tests for vision, mobility and reactions.
Manufacturers are equipping vehicles with an ever-increasing amount of passive safety devices — air bags etc. — that reduce injury after a crash. More recent safety features are in the Active Safety area — designed to help prevent a crash, ABS, Stability Control, Blind Sport Detection, Rear Cross Traffic Alert and Active Cruise control.
The traffic scene is constantly changing, so too is the traffic demographic and the need to adapt.
