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I am not thinking of not driving because of age, although I think retirement will make it that much easier. Too many drivers today THINK they are a good driver regardless of age. I think I am. Only ticket was a u turn on a secondary road that I was stupid enough to do in front of a motorcycle cop I deserved it. Only accident was in my 20's some 30 + years ago in which I was not at fault. looking back it was an older man who hit the gas instead of brake who was at fault. The problem as I see it is too many are not good drivers, they don't care that every one pays for their aggressiveness, speeding,carelessness through increased insurance rates. Age doesn't matter as much as attitude
Well this is quite well said, excellent, and not something I thought I'd ever hear you say, given that you plan to drive forever and feel life isn't worth living without driving a car.
1. I have said the same thing a few other times in other threads.
2. I never said that I plan to drive forever. I did say that giving up driving would be to think the unthinkable , or something similar, and that life as I know it would be over without driving.
3. Maybe I never posted this in so many words, so I am pleased to be able to clarify: Despite my deep attachment to my car and the lifestyle it makes possible, if I ever become impaired I will stop driving.
I know that if I develop dementia, my family would lock the car, take the keys and make sure I got to every appointment without having to ask. They'd also take my checkbook and manage my medications. I know what my capabilities are today.
I'm the type, I'd rather be whipped with a chain than ask anyone for help, or inconvenience anyone for any reason, even asking the neighbor to borrow a cup of sugar. I work in a nursing home and I run into my types all the time. They could be lying on the floor, unable to get up without help, and some how, some way, they'll get off that floor by themselves, as they'd rather die there than ask someone for help!
The thought of being dependent on someone, especially family members, would send me to an earlier grave!
My last partner was like that, in the last stages of AIDS, with neuropathy, painful to even walk, he'd head off to the bus stop to go to the VA hospital come hell or high water. And I had all the time in the world to drive him there! Nope! Never! Wouldn't hear of it!
That'll be me someday, perhaps even crawling on my hands and knees to that bus stop! And as they say, Pride goes before a fall! Alright! So I fall! And fall! But I'll get there, on my own!
I met a couple riding on the subway in NYC, a few years back, a couple in their 30's. How refreshing!
"Neither of us have ever drivin' a car our whole lives!" Now this couple will have no adjustment to make when they get to that point!
Plenty of people who are not all that old get tickets and have accidents; it's no reason to stop driving. If old people had an accident rate 100x greater it would be no reason. There's risk in everything. If younger people are afraid to be on the road with us let them stay home.
If the government took my license I'd still drive.
1. I have said the same thing a few other times in other threads.
2. I never said that I plan to drive forever. I did say that giving up driving would be to think the unthinkable , or something similar, and that life as I know it would be over without driving.
3. Maybe I never posted this in so many words, so I am pleased to be able to clarify: Despite my deep attachment to my car and the lifestyle it makes possible, if I ever become impaired I will stop driving.
I applaud your rationality. Many seniors, however, are in denial about their impairments. I know of two gents in their late 80s who think they are fine and they still drive. The truth is, with the severity of their condition (one much worse than the other), they should not be on the road even in a golf cart let alone a car. Their self centered view could kill someone. A few years ago here an 80-something year old driver from another country was driving without a license and killed a college girl on the street in front of my former house. She ultimately got off, with many speculating that b/c it's a politically sensitive culture around here it might have looked like racism to prosecute her. Who knows. All I know is that that idiot woman killed a girl.
I fully understand that there isn't public transportation everywhere. I know you will lose MANY experiences and general freedom when you can no longer drive. But do you plan to be behind the wheel when you are nearly deaf or have cataracts? Is it OK for you to plow into two other cars driven by neighbors — as my own lovely mother did when her reflexes failed her as she was one mile away from her house? Are you so devoid of interest in public safety that you will take other people's lives in your hands just so you can live the life you are now living?
I fully understand that seniors want to age in place. They don't want to give up the homes where they raised their children. They want to be near life-long friends and their doctor and their church. I don't blame ANYONE for that attitude. It was a mistake for our communities to decide to be so car-dependent and I doubt anyone ever asked for your input in where to put the houses.
But you HAVE to make some serious plans for how you are going to address the problem of transportation in your old age. Or maybe make some changes in "where you want to go." Who's going to take you to the doctor when you're sick? Your remark about buses leads me to believe you haven't even been on one for years. I don't know a single bus company that doesn't have handicapped accessibility for its buses now. They've solved that problem of the high step. The ADA probably made it mandatory. Is it also possible that you are ignoring other options, like van service for the disabled, that most towns have but people don't even bother to learn about until they are in a jam?
Many people ware just too proud to take advantage of these services. They don't want to trouble a friend asking for a ride to the store or to Sunday services. And they are the ones who are having four times more accidents than the average driver.
"Many deaf drivers use special devices that let them know when fire or ambulance sirens are wailing or car horns are blaring. To enable drivers to distinguish between sounds, many of these devices can rate the type of sound and alert users on a multi-light panel. Some deaf drivers also use special panoramic mirrors so they can see more of what is around and behind their car. In the U.S., there are few restrictions on the deaf obtaining a license to drive. In certain states, deaf drivers may be required to have special licenses to indicate that the driver is deaf."
I had cataract surgery in both eyes at age 59. I can see distance 20/30, with or without glasses but have my vision corrected to 20/20 with glasses and for computer and reading so I always wear them.
There is no public transportation in my town except for one cab company but there is a bus that runs on weekdays during the daytime, in town only. and by appointment.
You seem to think driving is only for errands. Nature photography is my hobby. I get pleasure from driving to out of the way places. Like I said, "I'd rather be dead."
I gave up driving about 5 years ago and sold my car. I live in a 99% walkable city and car ownership was more of a hassle. Many times I would take my car to go meet friends for a cocktail and park a few blocks from the bar. Inevitably, after 5-6 whiskeys I would forget I drove (that day) and walk the 4-5 blocks home. Several days later when I would go to the garage to "take the car out for a walk" and it would be gone. I would have to rack my brain
to remember when I used it last and where I left it. The final straw was when our family was walking home from a restaurant late one night. We passed the central park where they close down the surrounding streets to traffic after 12 am on weekends and their are 1000's of people milling about. In the center of this was my lone car. I was too embarrassed to get in and drive it home, so I went back the next morning and got it. That day my wife posted it on the internet and sold it in 4 hours for the same price I had paid 5 years earlier!
I gave up driving about 5 years ago and sold my car. I live in a 99% walkable city and car ownership was more of a hassle. Many times I would take my car to go meet friends for a cocktail and park a few blocks from the bar. Inevitably, after 5-6 whiskeys I would forget I drove (that day) and walk the 4-5 blocks home. Several days later when I would go to the garage to "take the car out for a walk" and it would be gone. I would have to rack my brain
to remember when I used it last and where I left it. The final straw was when our family was walking home from a restaurant late one night. We passed the central park where they close down the surrounding streets to traffic after 12 am on weekends and their are 1000's of people milling about. In the center of this was my lone car. I was too embarrassed to get in and drive it home, so I went back the next morning and got it. That day my wife posted it on the internet and sold it in 4 hours for the same price I had paid 5 years earlier!
1. I have said the same thing a few other times in other threads.
2. I never said that I plan to drive forever. I did say that giving up driving would be to think the unthinkable , or something similar, and that life as I know it would be over without driving.
3. Maybe I never posted this in so many words, so I am pleased to be able to clarify: Despite my deep attachment to my car and the lifestyle it makes possible, if I ever become impaired I will stop driving.
These are my thoughts exactly. There are different driving skills at all ages. Some people should not have ever been allowed behind a wheel. I seem to get the feeling that some people like to paint everyone with the same brush. I have had 1 accident since I was 19 - that's when a semi truck hit a deer and threw it into my car. I drive a lot, not as much as when I worked but still quite a bit and I am very comfortable behind a wheel. I also believe that as with many things - you use it or lose it. If you drive very infrequently your driving skills may suffer. Nervous drivers scare the h out of me and I ditch them as soon as I can.
My guess is an older person is penalized twice as much as a younger person. More than 1 accident and the insurances rates will probably keep you off the road.
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Alright! So I fall! And fall! But I'll get there, on my own!
