Six hurt when elderly driver loses control of car (Florida Market this tim

[snooper2]

http://www.cnn.com/2003/US/South/07/25/market.crash/index.html

Well, we had a shark attack summer, this is old man attack summer....

"FLAGLER BEACH, Florida (CNN) -- Six people were injured Friday when an elderly driver apparently lost control of his car and ran into booths at a farmer's market here, police said."

http://www.cnn.com/2003/US/South/07/25/market.crash/index.html

[FlashHarry]

1. Don't tell me.

I'm guessing this happens several times a year in the US and goes unreported by the national media––much like the kidnappings of last summer. Now, of course, we'll hear about every incident.

[Lars39]

3. I was in a store once when a car came crashing thru the front

and came to rest about 1/2 into the store. Elderly driver, foot meant to hit the brake and hit the gas instead. A little girl wound up under the car. I had started across the store with one kid on my hip, and the other kid by the hand and just happened to stop to look at a pair of pants. My oldest still remembers the incident. Very frightening.

[MindPilot]

5. happened to me too when I was working at a gas station in

Denver. Guy started to pull in, hit the gas instead of the brake, tore up a dozen or so cars and damged the building. Fortunately he didn't hit any pumps or people. He got out of the car and wandered inside like nothing happened; he didn't even know he'd been in an accident.

[MindPilot]

4. Good. Maybe there'll be some motivation to require

regular testing. Get the incomptetents off the roads. And not just the geezers; anybody who's too crazy or too stupid to operate a motor vehicle.

[L.A.dweller]

6. Elderly people

do not have to take the driving part of the exam only the written part when it comes time to renew (or is it when a certain time period has passed) the liscence.

Regular testing shouldn't be needed but once a person goes to the DMV to renew their liscence they should be required to take the driving part of the exam not just the written part.

[DS1]

2. f*cking sleeper agents were about to expire

/off to hell

[Solon]

7. I have to comment on this.

Last fall I was in an automobile accident that involved 4 cars, I was the 2nd from the front. We were hit by an elderly lady and the people in the car behind me was pushed straight into me, I was pushed into the car infront of me. Talk about hectic, the one of the girls in the car behind me was pregnant and went into premature labor (at the hospital they were able to stablize her) I ended up being injured as well, with inflammed cartilage around my sternum (talk about painful, got knocked forward and back, always where seatbelts people, saved my life!). The elderly lady was driving a van and hit the car behind me at 30 mph at least (we were at a stoplight). She claimed to have saw a spider that freaked her out. Then just this week, a day after I was talking to my sister about the accident in California, she gets hit by an elderly lady trying to make a left hand turn in the right hand turn lane. She thought it was my sister's fault even, saying that the lane she was in was the right lane to make a left hand turn in, even though she had to cross 2 other lanes to make such a turn. She hit the passenger side of my sister's car, and luckily nobody was hurt. My opinion on this is to up the testing requirements for everyone, and to require both written and driving test on renewal, in my state you don't need to do that if the license isn't expired yet. Also I say that if someone is involved in an accident that is ruled as their fault, and the cause is age related that their license be revoked just as I think they should if such an accident was due to substance abuse or recklessness.

[FlaGranny]

17. You know, I often see people make illegal

turns. I've seen people make right turns from the left turn lane on 3-lane highways, and left turns in the right turn lane on the same 3-lane highways. I have yet to see this by an elderly driver. Of course, I know it probably happens. Most problems I see with elderly drivers are not caused by "crazy" driving or even physical infirmities, they are caused by confusion. I believe that physicians and families are the first to notice this and one or the other should report this to the DMV. If you don't know where you are and can't tell the difference between the brake and gas pedal you are a danger.

[Wonder]

8. It's a Conspiracy

!

[Aidoneus]

13. is al-Qai'dah training these old people?

That's the one alert we haven't gotten. I figured it was coming after the scuba divers, but I was disappointed.

[koopie57]

9. I've been thinking a lot about this problem

My mom does not drive, but a couple of her friends do. They are concerned about their safety on the road and don't drive at night or further than a couple of miles. Their trips are mostly to the grocery store, post office, nursing home, dr. appointments and church. It seems a shame to take that away from them on one hand, but on the other hand....well.

You know what I think is part of the problem for the elderly. They do tend to drive the bigger cars, and what has changed is that these bigger Lincolns and Cadillacs have gotten so powerful. I have driven old 4 cylider engine cars for years and just recently purchased a 2000 Ford Windstar. The first time on the freeway I almost pooped in my pants when I stepped on the gas and started weaving back and forth. It was scary as I was not expecting so much power.

I wonder if instead of forbiding them to drive or even if they pass the test, still requiring them to drive something a little more easily to control?

[THUNDER HANDS]

10. Jesus

EVERYONE should be required to re-take a drivers test every 5 years, regardless of age.

There are tons of people with drivers licenses who should not have them.

[Enraged_Ape]

11. I agree. Test everyone every 5 years.

Although elderly people tend to have more problems when it comes to reflexes, peripheral vision, hearing, etc., that can impair driving, idiots are of all ages. I don't know why mandatory driving tests aren't required already. I haven't taken one since I was a teenager, and that was...ahem...a while ago.

[KDLarsen]

12. .. or do it like us

My drivers license expires when I turn 70 - after that, I have to get it renewed every year, which requires getting a medical test. Especially the vision is tested, as a lot of people drive around with tunnel vision etc.

[theHandpuppet]

14. The only problem is....

(Note, this post is not directed to you personally, it's a general observation)

I do agree that drivers should be retested, but as a society we have all contributed to the problem. Just think about how dependent we are on automobiles -- how are the elderly supposed to get to the doctor, the grocery store, the drug store, or ANYWHERE if they don't drive? Mass transit in this country sucks and in most smaller cities and towns there is no "mass transit" at all. Doctors no longer make house calls nor do groceries deliver themselves.

Before we start yanking away the licenses of elderly drivers (even when it is warranted for the public safety) we need to provide them with alternatives.

First of all, if there is a senior citizen center in your town, volunteer to spend an hour or so a week running errands for a senior citizen. If there is no such center, then perhaps an elderly neighbor would appreciate a ride to the grocery or a pickup at the drug store. An offer of an afternoon's shopping trip might be very welcome. You can even help with prescriptions by ordering medicines online for those who need it.

Taking elderly drivers off the road without providing an alternative for them is not a viable option. We can't just discard the elderly and keep them locked in their houses. Instead, we need to be part of the solution and to put pressure on our elected officials to get involved in providing needed services for our senior citizens. It's the very least we owe them! And remember, we'll all be in their position one day.

[classics]

15. Once again

People go out and drive at this age because they have to.

If they had access to free, safe, reliable public transportation, they wouldnt need to strap on a 10,000lb hunk of steel to go pick up a prescription.

But in America we eat the old instead of giving them what they need. So the proposed solutions will still be lock them up, take away the license and forget about them.

[MuseRider]

16. REMEMBER We will

all be elderly. Testing every 5 years is not enough, senility and other problems of aging can happen quickly. Something should be done but I don't know what. My elderly Aunt lived in Florida, was tested every year because she was legally BLIND! She passed every year, family called and complained but they said she was such a nice lady and she could see enough to navigate by fuzzy landmarks. Every corner of every street she normally drove had tire marks over the curbs.

[Throckmorton]

18. Oh, if that were only true.

Some of us may get to be elderly, maybe even most of us, but not all of us.

Mass Transit only works where the population density will support it. We love our cars, we love the freedom they give us, we love the ability to set our own schedule.

Most of the United States has to dilute a population for mass transit to work.

An example, I live in a small sub-urban town, with a tax supported regional bus service. Last January I needed to go to the local hospital, 6 miles away, to retreive my wife's car. She had been unexpectedly admitted to the hospital. I had to change busses twice, and it took me over 1 1/2 hours to get to the hospital. It also cost me $3.75, 1.25 per bus. The return trip took me 16 minutes, I timed it.

If it wasn't the fact that it was 10 degrees and windy, I could have almost walked ther in 1 1/2 hours. The busses were quite full, not packed, but full.

[genius]

19. What about all the people killed by 25 yr old or 35 yr old drivers

There are a lot more of those than people killed by elderly drivers. It's interesting how bigotted individuals in our society will label anyone from a group they wish to discriminate against and not people from their own group. Elderly people are among the best drivers in America. They depend on their driving for continued employment, for buying groceries, for going to the doctor, for driving people to church and for helping people get to the polls and vote.

America discriminates more against the elderly than any other country in the world. The fact that Americans want to stick it to their parents and grandparents is a sign of just how messed up the values in America are.

[MercutioATC]

20. Reflexes, judgement etc. deteriorate with age...

Not with ALL seniors, obviously, but with enough to make it an issue. What's the problem with requiring retesting every 4 years (when you renew your license) after the age of 65?