As a person gets older, he or she drives less. And that entails risks, claims Koos Spee, former national traffic prosecutor. Should seniors behind the wheel be more rigorously inspected?
People who are retiring drive on average half as many kilometers as before. Spee is concerned: “It is logical that older people who no longer work, drive less. But this says nothing about the number of accidents that someone makes. If you drive less, you also get less experience and you may become less sharp. “
Current inspection
If a driver is 75 years or older, he or she is inspected every five years. According to Spee, that is not strict enough. “Only the most basic things are looked at. Of course the eyes and ears will be tested, as will the general physical condition, but it is not an in-depth check.”
This means, for example, that people with dementia often pass the examination, as long as they still meet the physical requirements. Spee thinks this is risky. “You are not obliged to report this to the inspection, but people who suffer from it can deteriorate very quickly in a short time. The period of five years until the next inspection is much too long,” he thinks.
Back in the days
According to Spee, the regulations used to be stricter. “If you were really wrong, you were obliged to report it to the CBR. If you didn’t, you really had a problem the moment something happened on the road,” says the former national traffic prosecutor. “Nowadays, the minister says that people themselves are sensible enough to report it. But many elderly people think that they can still drive fine, even if that is unjustified.”
Spee gives an example of a woman who indicated that her husband can no longer drive alone. She wanted to report it to the CBR, but it thinks that the man should complete and send a statement himself. Only then will it be inspected. “Have an instructor ride with someone for an hour, then a lot will come to the table”, Spee suggests.
96 years
Roel Groenhoff (96) used to be a taxi driver, but now he still drives about 6000 to 7000 kilometers a year. “I still drive regularly to Luxembourg and I often visit my brother, who lives in an institution because of dementia. Those are decent trips,” he says. “I just go with the speed of traffic. On the highway I drive 100 or 120, I also just overtake trucks.”
He understands Koos Spee’s point: “I don’t know any examples from my area, but if I doubted my driving skills for a moment myself, I would immediately retire my car.” If you are younger, five years is a normal period, but at my age the CBR can also grant the driver’s license for a shorter period of time. If that’s the case with me, I’m okay with that.”
What do you think?
We formulate the statement: the inspection for older drivers must be stricter. Do you agree with Spee or is the current inspection strict enough? Cast your vote at the top left of this page and leave a comment below.
