As driving is synonymous with independence and social life, it’s vital to keep elderly drivers on the road. In the countryside, people are often isolated when they can no longer drive, and being able to continue driving is an intrinsic part of seniors’ quality of life.
Elderly: vulnerable road users
According to the statistics, healthy older drivers do not necessarily have more accidents than younger ones, so there is no reason to restrict driving solely on the grounds of age. Nevertheless, a number of pathologies that are common with ageing can pose a danger to driving (pathologies affecting perception of the environment, the motor system or the cognitive system).
What’s more, even if they don’t cause more accidents than younger people, senior citizens are far less likely to recover from road accidents. In 2023, 622 of them will have died on the road, compared with 356 of 18-24 year-olds. As their health is more fragile, they succumb more easily to injuries that may be benign for younger people.
This is why it is essential to rethink the mobility model for seniors, to protect them without depriving them of their freedom of movement.
The non-negligible consequences of giving up driving for seniors
According to an American study, giving up driving could lead to greater isolation among seniors, especially if they have no other means of transport. The study looked at more than 4,300 people over the age of 65, examining their driving habits as well as their social activities (visits to friends and family, dinners out, cinema outings, etc.).
Senior citizens who always drove proved to be much more active. They were three times more likely to visit family and friends, and almost three times more likely to take part in social outings, notes Teja Pristavec, a sociology researcher at Rutgers University and author of the study, in the American journal The Journal of Gerontology: Social Science.
Seniors who maintain a social life report better health, lower mortality risks over time, and are less affected by depression, dementia and other cognitive disorders. Mobility is often crucial in maintaining a social life.
The Globe and Mail
City elderly and country elderly
It’s not so logical to take away senior citizens’ driving licenses. The car is more often than not their last means of mobility, since 6.4 million people aged 60 or over live in rural areas outside France’s influence zone (according to ANCT).
If they lose their driving licence, they lose the ability to visit friends alone, do their shopping alone, go for a walk on a whim. The result is a reduction in social ties, often leading to depression or loss of autonomy.
Published by the Editorial Staff on