Using cell phones and driving while intoxicated are major issues that senior citizen drivers care about. But what’s foremost on their minds? Greater scrutiny on the license-renewal process for themselves.
More than 70 percent of drivers 65 and older favor policies that require drivers to renew their license in person once they reach 75, according to a study from the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety. Those same drivers also support added medical screenings for people wanting a license at that age in order to renew.
“Even though public perception tends to unfairly characterize seniors as a menace on the road, these findings indicate that older Americans tend to support policies to keep themselves safer behind the wheel, making them key allies in their mission to keep driving smarter and longer,” said AAA Foundation president and chief executive Peter Kissinger, in a release.
The foundation discovered that 86 percent of people 65 and older still drive, while the percentage was closer to 50 percent in the early 1970s. More than 68 percent of drivers older than 85 say they drive at least five days a week. That has prompted the group to begin a longer, five-year study on driving habits of senior citizens by monitoring the daily activities of 3,000 of them.
“As older adults spend an increasing amount of time behind the wheel, it’s important they take advantage of opportunities to stay driving safely,” AAA spokeswoman Michele Harris said, in a release. “Years of driving experience coupled with activities that help teach driving techniques to reduce crash risk can extend their safe-driving years.”
The new report finds that nearly 80 percent of drivers older than 75 favor medical screenings for drivers in their age range. And despite common belief otherwise, nearly 90 percent of drivers older than 65 reported no crashes in the last two years, or even receiving a moving violation like a speeding ticket.
Also, 65 percent of drivers older than 75 say they have never used a cell phone while driving, compared to just 48 percent of those between 65 and 69 who can say the same.
These findings were released as part of Older Driver Safety Awareness Week, which runs through Friday. Established by the American Occupational Therapy Association, the weeks aims to promote understanding of the importance of mobility and transportation to ensure older adults remain active in the community, and that transportation will not be the barrier stranding them at home.
