A27 this morning - Falmer

[Pavilionaire]

Given the ever-increasing number of pensioners in this country, it'd be an extremely expensive proposition. Not saying I disagree, but just making the point.

I don't see why cost is an issue. If you want to be able to drive you pay to take the test. If you fail you pay to take the test again. I can't see people giving up driving because of the cost of the test.

 

[edna krabappel]

I imagine that the police costs of safely managing a situation like this morning's A27 nonsense, and then processing it all afterwards, stack up a bit too, though.

Depends a lot on whether they crash before we catch them...

I picked up an 84 year old chap heading the wrong way down the same stretch of the A27 a few months ago.

He got on at Patcham, and got as far as Falmer before we found him. Fortunately it was about 11pm so there wasn't much traffic around. People who do that are almost exclusively either elderly or drunk. Or both.

 

[happypig]

I think you will find that 17-19 year olds have as many serious road accidents as the entire 60-69 age bracket, but don't let a few facts get in the way of your grudges.

A teenager will most likely become a better driver in a few years, a 70 year old will most likely become worse. My Father in law is a bloody awful driver these days, he misses so much and it's a matter of time until he has an accident; we've tried to get him to stop but his attitude is "Nothing wrong with my driving, it's these youngsters".

Loads of people are in favour or compulsory re-testing but no government will ever implement it because old people vote.

 

[Easy 10]

I know of at least one case where a driver had been medically certified as "fit to continue driving", despite the fact that he had been diagnosed with Alzheimers. The reason his GP had approved the continuation of his driving licence into old age (he was over 80) was that "he lived in a rural area and there weren't any bus services".

Outcome - he killed a colleague of mine who was cycling on a straight section of the A26, north of Crowborough, where visibility was no problem, simply because he didn't notice her. After the crash, he failed to stop - because he didn't realise he had hit her.

As long as there are presumptions that "a car is essential", these sorts of things will happen - until the authorities take a real responsibility for taking the driving keys away from people and chucking them away. I doubt if this is a big vote winner.

That is absolutely shocking. Makes me wonder how his GP must have felt after that, given that he based his decision not on how capable a driver his patient was, but on how inconvenient it would be for his patient were he to recommend not to let him continue driving.

Law needs changing.

 

[Notters]

I do think there should be a theory retest every ten years as some people seem clueless. E.g. having fog lights on whem there's a light mist but not putting any lights on when it's pissing down with rain.

 

[Tom Hark Preston Park]

The Argus used to regularly feature some poor old pensioner (hopefully not always the same one) who had inadvertently driven their mobility vehicle on to the A27. Whereupon they'd grimly rattle along at 5mph until good Samaritan motorists would form a buffer at front and back til the police could come and rescue them. Hoorah!

 

[Man of Harveys]

We had the same thing happen on the motorway in Belgium a few years back - Old Man of Harveys was probably doing about 80-90mph when suddenly there's a car barreling right towards us, head on. He played an absolute blinder to fling the wheel to the right just in time and thankfully other drivers swerved out of our way so no harm done. Scary though.

 

[edna krabappel]

We had the same thing happen on the motorway in Belgium a few years back - Old Man of Harveys was probably doing about 80-90mph when suddenly there's a car barreling right towards us, head on. He played an absolute blinder to fling the wheel to the right just in time and thankfully other drivers swerved out of our way so no harm done. Scary though.

 

[hans kraay fan club]

The Argus used to regularly feature some poor old pensioner (hopefully not always the same one) who had inadvertently driven their mobility vehicle on to the A27. Whereupon they'd grimly rattle along at 5mph until good Samaritan motorists would form a buffer at front and back til the police could come and rescue them. Hoorah!

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/sussex/7915392.stm

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-sussex-10684923

http://jalopnik.com/5184643/brit-pensioner-hits-freeway-on-mobility-scooter

View attachment 52502

 

[Mellotron]

The Argus used to regularly feature some poor old pensioner (hopefully not always the same one) who had inadvertently driven their mobility vehicle on to the A27. Whereupon they'd grimly rattle along at 5mph until good Samaritan motorists would form a buffer at front and back til the police could come and rescue them. Hoorah!

Thumbs up purely for the use of "grimly rattle".

 

[edna krabappel]

That is absolutely shocking. Makes me wonder how his GP must have felt after that, given that he based his decision not on how capable a driver his patient was, but on how inconvenient it would be for his patient were he to recommend not to let him continue driving.

Law needs changing.

Alzheimer's itself is not necessarily a block to driving though. It's more to to with what stage it's at.

Eyesight rules have been tightened- it used to take ages to get a licence off someone who'd failed a roadside eyesight test but now their licence can be revoked by the DVLA within hours.

One of my colleagues asked an old gent to read the number plate on the front of a police car recently from the standard 20.5m away.

The chap replies (genuinely) "What police car?".

He was about 3m from it in the end before he could read the plate. And had been driving around merrily until that point.

 

[Tom Hark Preston Park]

Thumbs up purely for the use of "grimly rattle".

See HKFC's third link for archive photo of grim rattler...

http://jalopnik.com/5184643/brit-pensioner-hits-freeway-on-mobility-scooter/all

(won't post the image in case it's somebody's dad or grandad)

 

[hans kraay fan club]

See HKFC's third link for archive photo of grim rattler...

http://jalopnik.com/5184643/brit-pensioner-hits-freeway-on-mobility-scooter/all

(won't post the image in case it's somebody's dad or grandad)

At least he's going the RIGHT WAY

 

[Steve.S]

A teenager will most likely become a better driver in a few years, a 70 year old will most likely become worse. My Father in law is a bloody awful driver these days, he misses so much and it's a matter of time until he has an accident; we've tried to get him to stop but his attitude is "Nothing wrong with my driving, it's these youngsters".

Loads of people are in favour or compulsory re-testing but no government will ever implement it because old people vote.

High Risk Age Groups: People between the ages of 15 and 24 and over 75 are the groups most likely affected by car accidents
You say teenagers will most likely become a better driver, but that does not take away that year in year out they are the most likely to be involved in car accidents. Older drivers are seen as safe drivers, however because of their age are more likely to die in a car accident. The way forward would surely be to ask drivers who have been involved in a accident that is deemed their fault, to have some sort of retest/training paid by them before they get back behind the wheel. Better to address the poor driving standards, whatever the age, then to pick out one age group.

 

[Notters]

See HKFC's third link for archive photo of grim rattler...

http://jalopnik.com/5184643/brit-pensioner-hits-freeway-on-mobility-scooter/all

(won't post the image in case it's somebody's dad or grandad)

Some great American comments on that thread. Like the bloke who can't understand why he would go to a shop when he could have something delivered.

 

[happypig]

Alzheimer's itself is not necessarily a block to driving though. It's more to to with what stage it's at.

Eyesight rules have been tightened- it used to take ages to get a licence off someone who'd failed a roadside eyesight test but now their licence can be revoked by the DVLA within hours.

One of my colleagues asked an old gent to read the number plate on the front of a police car recently from the standard 20.5m away.

The chap replies (genuinely) "What police car?".

He was about 3m from it in the end before he could read the plate. And had been driving around merrily until that point.

How do you stand if you stop someone who has mobility issues like, for example, a 78 year old who cannot turn his neck much so is unable to look properly at junctions ?

 

[Tom Hark Preston Park]

Some great American comments on that thread. Like the bloke who can't understand why he would go to a shop when he could have something delivered.

Indeed. You'd need a heart of stone not to at least do an ill-suppressed guffaw at references to Flat Stanley

 

[Postman Pat]

We have a fairly sizeable number of people already driving around with no licence/insurance/MOT etc...

If there was a compulsory re-test it would just add to the number of people driving illegally until caught.

 

[Easy 10]

Alzheimer's itself is not necessarily a block to driving though. It's more to to with what stage it's at.

Eyesight rules have been tightened- it used to take ages to get a licence off someone who'd failed a roadside eyesight test but now their licence can be revoked by the DVLA within hours.

One of my colleagues asked an old gent to read the number plate on the front of a police car recently from the standard 20.5m away.

The chap replies (genuinely) "What police car?".

He was about 3m from it in the end before he could read the plate. And had been driving around merrily until that point.

Thats why IMO it needs tightening up to incorporate regular reviews for everyone once we're north of 60, whether it be keeping tabs on alzheimers, eyesite, general physical ability for driving into old age etc. An MOT for the driver.

 

[withdeanwombat]

I self tested at 65...........and stopped driving. Too many problems from peripheral neuritis.