BBC on Elderly Drivers
The BBC Breakfast programme has been discussing elderly drivers (no link, unfortunately). The usual stuff came out of the discussion; older drivers have slower reactions, failing eyesight and get confused over the controls.
Yes, sure, our reactions do slow down as we grow older. And, yes, if you passed a test fifty years ago, road situations have changed. What never fails to surprise me is the tired clichés that are trotted out as a solution.
In some cases, elderly drivers may have to relinquish their licence due to failing faculties. There is an argument for regular health checks for drivers irrespective of age. I have my eyes tested on a regular basis, but beyond that I am unaware if I have an underlying health problem that may affect my driving capability. Well, not strictly true, as recent visits to the doctor for minor ailments involved some basic medical checks, so everything is working pretty much as it should.
The usual mantra was regurgitated – drivers should be compulsory tested at seventy. Why seventy? Why not any other arbitrary age before that? I see plenty of bad driving and it doesn’t always involve graybeards. I see younger drivers behaving like arseholes on the roads. Why not subject them to a compulsory test?
There is an argument for ongoing re-testing throughout our driving careers and Quentin Wilson put it forward. However, I have qualms. One of those qualms is based upon my mistrust of the DSA. I have been through the DSA’s testing regime for driving instructors and one thing it taught me is that the DSA does not understand what competence is, let alone accurately measure it.
Emma Soames from Saga interviewed on the programme suggested refresher courses. Well, yes, but what if you don’t need a refresher course? Such an approach will be self-defeating. Better to have a system of ongoing assessment – by people who are not employed by the DSA. If government agencies must be involved, then only as an umbrella organisation to set standards to ensure consistency nationwide, not to deliver testing to candidates.
Assessment is not quite the same thing as testing, there are subtle differences – which is partly why I believe the DSA should have nothing to do with delivery of the service. It is not a pass or fail test. It is what it says, an assessment of someone’s performance against a standard. At the end of which, the candidate is given feedback on that performance. Either they managed to achieve the standard or they did not. The assessment will determine what refresher training is needed if any. It may be that all the candidate needs is some feedback from the assessor. However, any refresher courses will be based upon individual needs. We can all learn something – the last time my driving was assessed it was identified that my use of gears was outdated and that I could improve in this area – I was changing sequentially rather than block changing. Therefore a blanket refresher was not appropriate.
Any scheme should be about improving standards of driving, not a five year deadline where people lose their licenses if they don’t satisfy the examiner. Bear in mind here the trauma of the driving test that most drivers recall with horror. This should be a positive experience welcomed by drivers as a means to demonstrate and improve their skills, not something they dread. And, frankly, it should not be used to penalise drivers of a certain age.
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