OLD AGE DRIVERS
As the average age and the living standards increase, there is an increasing number of old age drivers for beyond the age of retirement.
With age, reflexes become slow, muscular strength is reduced and some joints may become arthritic. Vision changes occur as well. Peripheral vision decreases, glaucoma and cataracts cloud vision, lens hardening makes close focusing difficult; pupil size decreases cutting down the amount of light reaching the retina thus affecting vision, specially at night, and the ability to adjust from light to darkness decreases as well.
These vision problems affect judgements regarding distances, cars pulling out of driveways, quick interpretation of the road signs, turning signals, etc. The ability to distinguish objects with slight differences in shades decreases, so they may not see in time a pedestrian wearing dark clothes crossing the road at night. While it is true that the total number and severity of accidents in which older drivers are involved is less than those is which young drivers are involved, the number of accidents per kilometre driven by older drivers is quite significant. Of course, they are law-abiding, courteous, non-competitive, and cautious drivers.
When older people are involved in an accident, they receive more injuries and their recovery is slower because of their fragile bones and advanced age.
Some older drivers find busy intersections difficult to cross and may make wrong turns.
Some are on medication and hence, should consult their doctor about the advisability of driving.
Diabetes can cause fluctuating vision, dizziness, and even unconsciousness, if care is not taken. Strokes, epilepsy, Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases cause dizziness and tremors, and impair memory and concentration.
If an older driver suffers from any of these ailments, heart disease and deteriorating vision and hearing, it is essential that a doctor be consulted regarding the advisability of driving.
Do not let driving a car become an issue of personal pride. Your safety and that of others may be at stake. Road skills and safety depend less on your age than on your overall health.
Older people should avoid heavily tinted glass windows since they require more light to see clearly than do the young.
In order to reduce the number of accidents, older drivers may be required to take driving tests at periodic intervals to assess their driving capability. They may be restricted to day-time driving, if need be.
Road signs should use larger letters, shiny material and contrasting colours. The signs should be well-maintained, clear, and not broken. Sadly, all these things are missing very much in most of the countries.
SAFETY OF CHILDREN
Children, being small, cannot see beyond parked cars from the pavement and hence, do not know the status of the traffic on the road. They also have less knowledge about road safety. So, they are likely to run out from behind parked cars onto the road while chasing a ball, a kite, or a friend.
Children cannot correctly judge the speed, the distance of a car, and gaps between the traffic. They often cannot quickly determine the direction from where a car, or the sound of a horn is coming. They cannot always tell whether something is moving or is stationary.
Children sometimes cannot separate fantasy from reality. They think they can stop a car by signalling with their hands, or that they can bounce back at the last moment as they see in cartoons. They can, therefore, act carelessly with regard to traffic.
Children may misunderstand traffic signs. A sign post for drivers to warn them that ‘children might be crossing’ may be interpreted by a child to mean that it is safe to cross the road without bothering to watch out for traffic. They think that drivers will always slow down on seeing the sign.
Children believe that when they see a vehicle, the driver of the vehicle sees them too. This, however, is often not the case. The short height of children makes it difficult for drivers to see them.
Car horns should be used with discretion. The sound may startle a child. He may run backwards into the path of oncoming traffic. He may, on the other hand, take it to mean that the driver has seen him and is asking him to move faster and may get into the next traffic lane in a hurry and be run over by the oncoming traffic. Either way, he faces a situation that could be injurious and even fatal too.