Transportation Research Part F: Traffic Psychology and Behaviour
The case for and against mandatory age-based assessment of older drivers
Introduction
There is no standard approach to the licensing of older drivers. In Europe for example, older drivers in Belgium, France, Germany and Sweden are effectively ‘licensed for life’, whereas in other countries (including Denmark, Italy, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands and Portugal), older drivers are required to undergo regular assessment to prove their continued fitness to drive – with this assessment starting as early as 45 years of age in Finland (OECD, 2001).
In many countries, older driver licensing practices also vary internally across regional licensing jurisdictions. In Australia for example: at one extreme, States such as New South Wales, Tasmania, Western Australia and South Australia have relatively stringent age-based assessment requirements entailing both medical examinations and on-road driving assessment, whereas the State of Victoria has no regular testing (Fildes et al., 2000). Similar variations exist within the US (Grabowski, Campbell, & Morrisey, 2004).
The aim of this paper is to examine the case for and against mandatory assessment of older drivers, based on the most recent research findings.
Section snippets
An anticipated increase in older driver crashes
The primary case for age-based assessment of fitness to drive is driven by safety considerations. While today’s older drivers are currently involved in few crashes in terms of absolute numbers, they are frequently viewed as over-represented in crashes involving serious injury and death once distance travelled is taken into account (see Fig. 1). The so-called ‘bath tub curve’ has been repeatedly confirmed both in Australia and in most other Western countries.
As alarming as the current crash
Age-based mandatory assessment programs have no demonstrable road safety benefits
One of the first evaluations of the effectiveness of mandatory age-based assessment programs was conducted by Hakamies-Blomqvist, Johansson, and Lundberg (1996) who compared the Finish and Swedish licensing practices. Finland cancels a driver’s licence at age 70 years and requires regular medical checks if the licence is to be reinstated and thereafter renewed, whereas Sweden has no age-related controls. No crash-reduction effects of the Finnish program could be detected compared to Sweden.
An alternative to mandatory age-based assessment
The predicted growth in the proportion of older individuals in most OECD societies and associated shifts in mobility patterns, combine to suggest that there will be a substantial increase in the older driver road safety problem over the next three decades unless appropriate countermeasures are implemented (Hu, Jones, Reuscher, Schmoyer, & Truett, 2000). Providing for on-going, safe mobility of ageing baby boomers will require a rethinking of policies and strategies – including licensing
Summary
The case for age-based assessment of fitness to drive is driven by safety considerations. Older drivers’ apparent over-representation in casualty crashes and demographic changes that will increase the numbers of older drivers on the road, arguably mean a need for mandatory medical and on-road assessment of all older drivers.
The case against age-based assessment of fitness to drive, is multiple: it has no demonstrable road safety benefits; it prompts premature cessation of driving; it prompts
References (51)
Older drivers and risk to other road users
Accident Analysis and Prevention
(1997)Fatal accidents of older drivers
Accident Analysis and Prevention
(1993)Compensation in older drivers as reflected in their fatal accidents
Accident Analysis and Prevention
(1994)- et al.
Why do older drivers give up driving?
Accident Analysis and Prevention
(1998) - et al.
Crash risks of older drivers: a panel data analysis
Accident Analysis & Prevention
(1998) Accidents, mileage and the exaggeration of risk
Accident Analysis and Prevention
(1991)- et al.
Some consequences of different older driver licensing procedures in Australia
Accident Analysis and Prevention
(2004) The relationship of age and State licence renewal policies to driving licensure rates
Accident Analysis and Prevention
(1995)- et al.
Fragility versus excessive crash involvement as determinants of high death rates per vehicle-mile of travel among older drivers
Accident Analysis and Prevention
(2003) - et al.
Involvement of older drivers in multi-vehicle side impact crashes
Accident Analysis and Prevention
(1990)
Effects of aging on older drivers’ travel characteristics
Transportation Research Record
The effects of age on accident severity and outcome in Irish road traffic accident patients
Irish Medical Journal
Safe mobility for senior citizens
IATSS Research
Older driver involvement in fatal and severe traffic crashes
Journal of Gerontology: Social Sciences
Traffic safety and the driver
Cited by (41)
Changes in older drivers’ self-awareness of driving ability over one year
2020, Accident Analysis and PreventionTrends in the crash involvement of older drivers in Australia
2018, Accident Analysis and PreventionCitation Excerpt :There are also higher proportions of older adults who hold a driver’s licence, as well as increases in the amount of driving done, in more recent cohorts (BITRE, 2014; Fildes et al., 2001; Hakamies-Blomqvist, 1993; Hjorthol et al., 2010; Hu et al., 2000; Lyman et al., 2002; Mitchell, 2013; OECD, 2001; Road Safety Foundation, 2016). As a result, there is likely to be a larger number of older drivers on the road in coming years (Fildes, 2006; Hjorthol et al., 2010; Langford and Koppel, 2006; OECD, 2001). In Australia, the proportion of drivers aged 65 and over is expected to increase from 13% of the population of licensed drivers in the year 2000 to 22% in 2030 (OECD, 2001).
Improving compliance with medical fitness to drive reviews: The role of behaviourally-optimised letters
2018, Transportation Research Part F: Traffic Psychology and BehaviourIdentifying compensatory driving behavior among older adults using the situational avoidance questionnaire
2017, Journal of Safety ResearchCitation Excerpt :However, the relative crash risk of older drivers is not as high as one might expect based on the functional declines commonly experienced with age (Langford & Koppel, 2006a). One reason is that many older adults gradually and voluntarily modify their driving over time to compensate for declines in driving skills, often culminating in deciding to stop driving altogether (Hakamies-Blomqvist, Siren, & Davidse, 2004; Langford & Koppel, 2006b; Smiley, 2004). This behavior has been referred to as driving self-regulation.