The dangerous elderly driver thread.

[Madman]

It seems stories of "Senior Citizens" causing huge accidents are becoming more and more commonplace.   It's interesting that some politicians want to curtail the driving rights of young drivers while doing nothing about elderly drivers who "confuse" the gas and brake pedals.  This wouldn't have anything to do with the fact seniors vote in high numbers while teenagers can't vote, wouldn't it?  No, of course not! 

Anyway, I've decided to create a thread where we can examine how older drivers are becoming an increasing threat to our safety.  Let's start with this article I came across in a British news website.



http://www.edp24.co.uk/news/woman_left_shaken_by_freak_car_parking_accident_in_dereham_1_912176

It's yet another tale of an old biddy who can't tell the difference between the accelerator and the brake.  Do you think her licence will get pulled by the authorities?  Like hell it will.  If a young driver did this, they would face accusations of being "reckless" and "irresponsible".  But when Myrte from the Bridge Club wreaks havoc from behind the wheel, she's given a free pass.

[Laconian]

I've seen a senior citizen accident happen before my very eyes. An oldster in a Volvo S60 mistook the gas pedal for the brake (I'm assuming) because he FLEW into a new Dodge Ram (irony) at high speed. The Ram was pushed backwards and hit a Ranger behind it, which continued roling 20 ft into the parking lot behind it. Very loud and dramatic accident.

The Volvo was TOTALED (the engine looked like it dropped from its mounts, the intercooler was crushed, etc.), the truck was hugely messed up, the RAM looked mildly mangled.

Menaces!!

[2o6]

Dude, you aren't young. 

Aside from old people driving too slow or their reflexes being slower than mine, I haven't seen any bad elderly crashes. 

[Laconian]

Dude, you aren't young.

He's not 80 :P

[Secret Chimp]

I've seen many old people accelerating no faster than their prostate-choked morning pees and acting like the center turn lane might be lava. Or maybe it isn't. No! Yes! Wait I'm not turning here.

They aren't helping kill off Buick's stereotype either.

[2o6]

I've seen many old people accelerating no faster than their prostate-choked morning pees and acting like the center turn lane might be lava. Or maybe it isn't. No! Yes! Wait I'm not turning here.

They aren't helping kill off Buick's stereotype either.

I see more old people in Camries and Scion xA's and xB's, and other small CUV's than Buicks.

[Secret Chimp]

And in Ohio I saw at least half a dozen Windstars every single day and I see maybe one a month out here. I'm talking OLD PEOPLE, not people who are old. Hunched over tiny feeble wobbly people.

[Laconian]

Driving early '90s Cadillac STSes with 5000 miles on the odo.

[Secret Chimp]

As soon as you see these tail lights you know you're in for fun!

[Laconian]

It's drifting into your lane!! Aghhhhh!

[shp4man]

About 15 years ago, I was working at another car dealer and as I walked out the service drive for lunch, and old geyser got in his 1970 Ford station wagon. The car had 390 badges. Anyway, the old guy was backing out of his spot and hit the gas instead of the brake. Dude, the rear tires on that old heap freaking lit up!  Floored in reverse, with squealing, smoking tires, the car luckily plowed into a cinder block wall and stopped. The old farts foot fell off the gas in the collision, I guess. He was relatively unhurt and had to pay for the telephone booth he ran over and to re-do the messed up wall.
Christ, I hope I never get that bad.

[cawimmer430]

Most senior citizens I see here drive Porsches, Ferraris, Aston Martins, Toyota Camrys, Honda Accords, Lamborghinis and other exotics.  

[Laconian]

I saw another one where the guy plowed into a concrete wall of paint shop in Seattle and KEPT ON ACCELERATING into the wall, for about 20 seconds, while an employee was shouting NO NO NO NO NO

[cawimmer430]

I saw another one where the guy plowed into a concrete wall of paint shop in Seattle and KEPT ON ACCELERATING into the wall, for about 20 seconds, while an employee was shouting NO NO NO NO NO

Dude, it was the gas pedal! Don't blame the elderly for something that is beyond their control! 

[Madman]

"Ralph Parker (Age 93) of Pinellas Park drove for 3 miles Wednesday night after striking a 52-year-old pedestrian with his gold 2002 Chevrolet Malibu, severing the man's right leg, police said.

A toll taker on the Sunshine Skyway saw the body stuck through Parker's windshield and notified police.

Charges were not likely to be filed, because Parker did not appear to know what had happened."


http://www.clickorlando.com/news/5135962/detail.html

[ifcar]

I saw another one where the guy plowed into a concrete wall of paint shop in Seattle and KEPT ON ACCELERATING into the wall, for about 20 seconds, while an employee was shouting NO NO NO NO NO

That's standard for pedal misapplication, as the driver thought from the beginning they had their foot on the brake.

[Eye of the Tiger]

That's standard for pedal misapplication, as the driver thought from the beginning they had their foot on the brake.

People are smart.

[Madman]

"LA MESA, Calif. -- A 92-year-old woman was thrown from a car and killed Monday when her husband, also 92, lost control of the vehicle and drove onto a sidewalk, police said."

http://www.fox5sandiego.com/news/kswb-elderly-driver-crashes-elderly-driver-kills-pedestrian-on-sidewalk-police-say-20110425,0,5912741.story


Although the article makes no mention of it, I'll bet she wasn't wearing her seatbelt.

[Byteme]

From a lawyer's website

Statistics Teenage Car Accidents:
The number 1 one killer of teenagers is car crashes

Around 6,000 teenage drivers are killed in auto accidents each year.

Teen Drivers ages 16 to 19 have death rates four times that of a driver age 25-29 years of age.

? Automobile accidents are the top killer among teenagers
? Drivers between the ages of 15 and 20 cause over $40 billion in damages per the NHSTA
? In 2005, 23% of teenagers killed were under the influence of drugs or alcohol
? You?re more likely to get in an accident at 16 than at any other age
? Accident rates for 16 to 19 year olds is higher at those ages than any other group
? Teens are 3 times more likely to get in an accident after 9:00pm daily
? Teens are more likely to be partof an accident when they have passengers than without
? Males between 16 and 19 are 1.5 times more likely to be involved in a fatal crash than females within the same age group.
? Teens have the lowest use of seatbelt rate

[Laconian]

New drivers are not very good drivers! News at 11!

I'd wager that many of those accidents are unavoidable - if we raised the age to 20, we'd have newbies on the road, albeit slightly older/more mature ones. If we want to keep allowing allow people to enter the ranks of the licensed, then we will need to suffer the mistakes of the newbies. Old people getting into wrecks, though -- that's totally different.

[Byteme]

From the Center for Disease Control

Teen Drivers: Fact Sheet
Motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death for U.S. teens, accounting for more than one in three deaths in this age group.

In 2009, eight teens ages 16 to 19 died every day from motor vehicle injuries. Per mile driven, teen drivers ages 16 to 19 are four times more likely than older drivers to crash. Fortunately, teen motor vehicle crashes are preventable, and proven strategies can improve the safety of young drivers on the road.

How big is the problem?
In 2009, about 3,000 teens in the United States aged 15?19 were killed and  more than 350,000 were treated in emergency departments for injuries suffered in motor-vehicle crashes.  

Young people ages 15-24 represent only 14% of the U.S. population. However, they account for 30% ($19 billion) of the total costs of motor vehicle injuries among males and 28% ($7 billion) of the total costs of motor vehicle injuries among females.

In 2006, the motor vehicle death rate for male drivers and passengers ages 15 to 19 was almost two times that of their female counterparts.

Who is most at risk?

The risk of motor vehicle crashes is higher among 16- to 19-year-olds than among any other age group. In fact, per mile driven, teen drivers ages 16 to 19 are four times more likely than older drivers to crash.

Among teen drivers, those at especially high risk for motor vehicle crashes are:

Males: In 2006, the motor vehicle death rate for male drivers and passengers ages 15 to 19 was  almost two times that of their female counterparts.

Teens driving with teen passengers: The presence of teen passengers increases the crash risk of unsupervised teen drivers. This risk increases with the number of teen passengers.

Newly licensed teens: Crash risk is particularly high during the first year that teenagers are eligible to drive.

What factors put teen drivers at risk?

Teens are more likely than older drivers to underestimate dangerous situations or not be able to recognize hazardous situations.

Teens are more likely than older drivers to speed and allow shorter headways (the distance from the front of one vehicle to the front of the next). The presence of male teenage passengers increases the likelihood of this risky driving behavior.

Among male drivers between 15 and 20 years of age who were involved in fatal crashes in 2005, 37% were speeding at the time of the crash and 26% had been drinking.

Compared with other age groups, teens have the lowest rate of seat belt use. In 2005, 10% of high school students reported they rarely or never wear seat belts when riding with someone else.

Male high school students (12.5%) were more likely than female students (7.8%) to rarely or never wear seat belts.10  Compared with other age groups, teens have the lowest rate of seat belt use.

African-American students (12%) and Hispanic students (13%) were more likely than white students (10.1%) to rarely or never wear seat belts.

At all levels of blood alcohol concentration (BAC), the risk of involvement in a motor vehicle crash is greater for teens than for older drivers.10
In 2008, 25% of drivers ages 15 to 20 who died in motor vehicle crashes had a BAC of 0.08 g/dl or higher.

In a national survey conducted in 2007, nearly three out of ten teens reported that, within the previous month, they had ridden with a driver who had been drinking alcohol. One in ten reported having driven after drinking alcohol within the same one-month period.

In 2008, nearly three out of every four teen drivers killed in motor vehicle crashes after drinking and driving were not wearing a seat belt.

In 2008, half of teen deaths from motor vehicle crashes occurred between 3 p.m. and midnight and 56% occurred on Friday, Saturday, or Sunday.10

[Laconian]

Again, how much is that because of their age, and how much of that is because of inexperience?

[Byteme]

New drivers are not very good drivers! News at 11!

I'd wager that many of those accidents are unavoidable - if we raised the age to 20, we'd have newbies on the road, albeit slightly older/more mature ones. If we want to keep allowing allow people to enter the ranks of the licensed, then we will need to suffer the mistakes of the newbies. Old people getting into wrecks, though -- that's totally different.

Yeah because they're old, right.  

See the below post which describes why teens are such crappy drivers, including me when I was a teen.

[Byteme]

Again, how much is that because of their age, and how much of that is because of inexperience?

Dead is dead, injured is injured.  The point is young drivers suck worse than old ones, and generally a small number of older drivers cause the kind of spectacular accidents you see on the news but from the statistics a large percentage of young drivers suck at it.

[L. ed foote]

It's drifting into your lane!! Aghhhhh!

[Madman]

It's the double-standard that is applied to young versus old drivers that really pisses me off.  All people are supposed to be treated equally in the eyes of the law, and yet that is seldom the case.

Remember the then 86-year-old driver who killed 10 people (including a two-year-old infant) when, driving his geezer-spec 1992 Buick LeSabre, he ploughed through a Farmer's Market in Santa Monica, California in 2003?  Now, anyone else who kills 10 people would certainly be thrown in prison for the rest of their lives, right?  Well, not this "respectable senior citizen".  Despite showing no remorse for his actions, George R. Weller was given probation, otherwise known as a slap on the wrist.

Not bad for a mass-murderer!

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/11/21/us/21sentence.html

[ifcar]

It's the double-standard that is applied to young versus old drivers that really pisses me off.  All people are supposed to be treated equally in the eyes of the law, and yet that is seldom the case.

Remember the then 86-year-old driver who killed 10 people (including a two-year-old infant) when, driving his geezer-spec 1992 Buick LeSabre, he ploughed through a Farmer's Market in Santa Monica, California in 2003?  Now, anyone else who kills 10 people would certainly be thrown in prison for the rest of their lives, right?  Well, not this "respectable senior citizen".  Despite showing no remorse for his actions, George R. Weller was given probation, otherwise known as a slap on the wrist.

Not bad for a mass-murderer!

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/11/21/us/21sentence.html

That's just not true. Many people of all ages avoid jail time for accidents. You usually need to be demonstrating pretty gross negligence to go to jail over a car accident, and being old is not gross negligence.

[Morris Minor]

From my own personal purely unscientific personal experience. My wife & I have seen HUGE declines in our respective sets of parents as they have moved into their 80s. They just cannot process information as fast. So if they are in a complicated traffic situation, it is overwhelming.

My Dad, 83, has always been a pretty good driver, and he still has all his marbles. Luckily this means he recognizes his reaction time decline and avoids driving now in all but optimal conditions. He won't drive at night & he avoids bad weather and rush hours.

My mother-in-law on the other hand, 82, has always been a horrible driver and is beginning to go a bit batty (forgetfulness, irrationality etc).  Her bad driving traits are exaggerated in her old age - she does not know what half the buttons in her car are for.

She's the one we worry about, but I don't think either is in the position they were ten years ago to deal with emergencies.

Having seen this in our parents, I fully understand why gas pedals get mistaken for brake pedals. The "unintended acceleration" crusades against auto manufacturers over recent decades have regrettably obscured this issue.

[Madman]

"A judge has warned about the rising threat of dangerous elderly drivers after an 89-year-old motorist with dementia was blamed for a crash in which a motorcyclist died.

Retired farmer Albert Bradley had ignored pleas from his family to stop driving amid concerns of his poor health, Hull Crown Court was told.

Their fears were realised when he collided with motorcyclist Brian Emmerson, 44, who died a month later from his injuries.

But after admitting careless driving, Bradley, now 90 and suffering from a "dementing condition", escaped with a ?500 fine and a 10-year driving ban."


http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-443721/Elderly-driver-dementia-kills-biker.html


So, ignore warnings from your family that your driving skills are inadequate then kill an innocent person and get nothing but a fine and a stern warning not to do it again?  Justice served!

[2o6]

Key Word: "Dementia".