Traffic Accidents Caused by Senior Citizens

By 2020, more than 40 million senior drivers are projected to be on the roads.

With the senior population increasing more rapidly than any other demographic, seniors are living longer, leading more active lives and driving longer. By 2020, there will be more than 40 million drivers age 65 and over on the roads. In 2005, those age 65 and over represented 13 percent of the population while accounting for 18 percent of all traffic-related fatalities, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Additionally, that year 6,512 seniors were killed in traffic accidents, the NHTSA says.

Citations

NHTSA research also shows that senior drivers are more likely than other drivers to receive traffic citations for failing to yield, turning improperly, running red lights and stop signs, ignoring pedestrian crossings and parking violations, all of which are indications of decreased driving ability. Seniors are more likely than younger people to get into multiple-vehicle accidents, and the accidents are more dangerous for them. A senior involved in a car accident is more likely to be seriously hurt, more likely to require hospitalization and more likely to die than younger people involved in the same crash.

Causes

Studies by AAA attribute increasing incidences of accidents among seniors to impaired vision and hearing and deteriorating cognitive abilities, such as motor-reaction times.

Other Factors

Environmental factors also contribute to senior accidents. These include signs and road markings that are difficult to see or read, confusing intersections, older vehicles that lack automatic safety features and new technologies and dashboard instrument panels with multiple displays. It should also be noted that many senior drivers were never required to take a driving test when their licenses were initially issued, and traffic volume has grown significantly over the decades.

Pedestrians

Seniors are also disproportionately pedestrian victims of traffic accidents. There are a number of factors that contribute to this--seniors may take longer to cross busy intersections; crossing times may not be sufficiently long enough to allow seniors to cross safely; there may be a lack of pavements and a lack of crosswalks.

Alternatives

Some seniors state that they have to drive because there are no feasible alternatives in their region. As of 2009, there were 15 federal programs containing provisions for the mobility needs of seniors, which are overseen by state and local government agencies, and, generally, the Area Agencies on Aging. Alternatives include subsidized public transportation fares and special senior bus services. Seniors looking to find transportation alternatives in their area should contact their local senior center.

References

• Helpguide: Senior Driving
• National Highway Traffic Safety Administration: Driver Safety Research Reports

Resources

• SeniorDrivers: Senior Driver Safety