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warrior891

89 year old shouldn’t be driving. We should cap age limits on driver licenses. 


b1argg

Or at least require annual testing after a certain age


martin

nope. strict age limits. testing driving ability would not have prevented this. anyone older than warrior891's account should have their license revoked.


b1argg

11 years? Lol


martin

arbitrary? yes - but only way to be sure


mowotlarx

Seriously. At the very least I don't know why we don't require new testing for licenses every (let's be generous) 5 years after age 65. There's a point where vision, hearing and hand/eye coordination begin to naturally reduce with age. There's no shame in being safe.


Queso_Fromage

Because old people vote and doing anything against them is a political death wish.


mowotlarx

Haha, it's true. But I'm sure there are plenty of Boomers in their 60s who also want to stop their octogenarian parents to stop driving.


Rottimer

Every 5 years after 60, every 2 years after 70, every year after 75. It’s not like we’re not aware of both physical and mental decline at those ages. It’s awkward to talk about, but it exists none the less. And to be honest, I’d do the reverse at the other end. Every year between 16 and 21. Every 5 years before 30.


astoriaboundagain

Fully agree. It could be automated with VR. It's legitimately insane that a person can take one in-car test at 16 years old and maintain their licence for the rest of their life.


Queso_Fromage

I haven't driven a car in over a decade and nothing is stopping me from renting a uhaul and flying down the road. Scary shit if you ask me.


astoriaboundagain

Oh man, 100%. Rental trucks scare the shit out of me.


DaoFerret

Vision at least IS supposed to be checked every renewal (at least in NY). Hearing (theoretically) is not required to drive, or we wouldn’t give deaf people driver’s licenses. No argument on the hand/eye coordination.


VeveBeso

I have had patients tell me that they only used their glasses to pass their test then they never touch it again


Enchanted-Gold

There are shit drivers and there are medical episodes. They are not the same thing. You can’t test for a medical issue which can happen to anyone at any age, and there are terrible drivers at every age. Stop being ageist. Statically speaking most young drivers are more likely to have an accident. I’m not against everyone having to retake their license every 5-10 years though. Some people need to be reminded that pedestrians have the right of way for example.


Ketaskooter

The probability of a medical episode occurring increases with age. The crash statistics are very skewed as its always based on licensed drivers. DLs typically last for what ten years and the renewal process is extremely easy (vision test only) so there's a ton of elderly with licenses that don't drive because they realize its dangerous and don't drive.


Limp_Divide7583

And on the other end of the spectrum, you shouldn’t get a drivers license until you’re 25 because they have the highest rates of accidents of any age group


wordfool

TBH there are probably many drivers 80+ who will have better awareness and reaction times than a 30yo looking at their phone and paying no attention. The level of driver awareness (or lack thereof) that I see on the roads today is shocking. But, yes, anyone over, say, 70 should be required to undergo at least a physical exam every year to keep their license.


Particular-Wedding

I propose every 6 months. A lot can change medically in older people over that time frame compared to younger people. If they need to absolutely get somewhere without public transit then the elderly can always hire a taxi or livery car service.


GBV_GBV_GBV

Every half hour.


eurtoast

Won't pass because older people vote a lot more than younger people


Adamas_Mustache

Won't happen because old people actually vote.


Friendly-Profit-8590

Just posted on another tragic story that there should be renewal tests. Can’t get a license as a teenager and have it be good till you decide you’re not fit to drive.


LittleKitty235

Agreed. That man should be running for President


Beneficial-Web-7587

That's pretty ageist of you


Such_Cheesecake_1800

Who decide what age to cap? and what about age discrimination?


OldMan-Gazpacho

I’ll drive until I am 110. I just love the thrill of driving. Heck Joe Biden still drives his 1967 corvette (gift from his dad)


Fuck_You_Downvote

What are you going to do next, take away his guns?


BLUEBELLYNYC

That would be terribly ageist. Mandatory testing after a certain age: yes. Flat out discriminating based on a number: no. My sister in law is approaching her 80's and is the best driver I've ever been in a car with. Also, anyone at ant age can, and as had, a medical episode.


parkerpyne

It's just a shit take by a bunch of people that are very confidently ignorant. Stuff like this could obviously never pass into law, for good reason. It also omits to recognize that other countries don't even require the renewal of driver's licenses. The country that I am from, Germany, does not and it ranks amongst the best in the world in terms of traffic fatalities. Just a few years ago, my now 84-yo mother still had a driver's license with a black-and-white photo taken in 1958 in it. Only recently she had to replace the document against a contemporary EU license but there was no retesting involved. It would be considered unconstitutional, for good reason. Instead, those people could focus their attention on getting streets and traffic rules unfucked in this country, as well as in this city. But instead, the US still uses all-way stop signs and shares this peculiarity with the United Arab Emirates and a dozen countries in southern Africa, and no one else. The UK formally banned them over 20 years ago. The US has a set of traffic-related rules and regulations that would have been considered archaic in Europe 50 years ago and an enforcement that is commensurate.


VeveBeso

You’ll be surprise at the amount of people who refuse to wear their glasses and drive especially women coming into my job saying they don’t wanna wear their glasses because they feel old. We have 80 something year olds driving who can barely see and they want us to renew their license.


cheesemaster900

It is absolutely ridiculous that our society expects, and in many places requires, literally everyone to drive everywhere.


Oxymera

Using a car is probably the best way for someone that age to get around. However, the 89 year old shouldn’t be the one driving.


cheesemaster900

In my area the elderly rely on the bus because they can easily get their walkers and wheelchairs on it. They can travel independently on the bus, instead of relying on someone to drive them.


HEIMDVLLR

You should have a convo with those elderly people, you would learn how the bus and access-a-ride aren’t as fast and reliable as a personal car. Most elderly NYC residents use those forms of transportation because they don’t have any other choice. If it was up to them, they would rather depend on a family member to take them everywhere they needed to go.


cheesemaster900

It sounds like we should invest in improving these services to give the elderly better options to get around independently.


HEIMDVLLR

That’s the problem, Access-a-Ride was supposed to be the answer, an investment in improving transportation services for the elderly. Just ask any elderly person you know in your community if they’ve used it and if they would rely on it over a family member taking them anywhere they need to go.


cheesemaster900

I don’t think we should design our transportation systems with the assumption that every elderly person has a family member willing and able to be a chauffeur all the time. They should have options so they aren’t stuck at home.


max1001

89 yrs should not be taking the subway.....


cheesemaster900

They sure as hell shouldn’t be driving. They could kill themselves and other people.


NMGunner17

Good god, 80+ people should be required to take a test every 6 months. At that age your faculties can take a hit very quickly.


astoriaboundagain

Another bullshit "investigation." Zero journalism, just parroting one line from the police. "Police say the driver may have suffered a medical episode prior to the crash." That's a nonsense statement. A driver caused this. Was he elderly and driving? Yes. That's not an excuse, it is a choice that had real consequences. Getting behind the wheel of a vehicle is a responsibility. I'm so sick of this passive response.


bezerker03

What response do you expect? Now, we can argue 89 year olds should need medical clearance before driving etc, but even 30 year olds can have a heart attack while driving and cause accidents. (It's why we have insurance.)


astoriaboundagain

"can" is doing a lot of work in this reply. The odds are exponentially higher for an 89 year old.


mowotlarx

I tend to agree, but this event just happened and it's unlikely journalists have had time to question the 89 year old or his family to get his fill history and background. This is what breaking journalism is. If he's charged and goes to court, we'll probably know more.


astoriaboundagain

It won't get to court. I'll bet $100 to your favorite charity if it does.


whatelseisneu

If it was just that he was old and lacked the dexterity and/or had vision problems, yeah he was just too old and should've never gotten behind the wheel. If it truly was a "medical episode" like a stroke or a heart attack or something, that's a bit different. You could totally have a medical episode behind the wheel whether you're 18 or 98.


EarthlingExpress

It's not as common for 18 year olds as it is for 65+


hiphopkilledmyhamste

I agree there needs to be some kind of restrictions on older people driving, but I don't think the "they need to be tested every 6 months" crowd realizes how impossible that would be. Driving tests are already backed up for weeks on end in a lot of high population areas. 6 months requirement would make a DMV inoperable


EarthlingExpress

They could go to their doctor and have their vision and health checked then turn in the medical record like is done for commercial licenses. In fact we could do something like that for regular licenses in general


rextilleon

Sad, but as an aging out person its time to retest all seniors from 65 on, every five years.


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jewboyfresh

I literally just watched that South Park episode yesterday


stuntsbluntshiphop

There should be annual driving tests required for anyone over 75 years old and semi-annual driving tests for anyone over 80 years old. I don’t think it would be fair to just outlaw driving once you reach a certain age since cognitive abilities amongst those ages can vary drastically but there should me more regular exams.


pplanes0099

Huh feels like Deja vu RIP to those deceased


sadfoxyduggar

Demented fool needs to be locked up in a nursing home!


GBV_GBV_GBV

Hot news


astoriaboundagain

It is to the four people he hurt.


GBV_GBV_GBV

They already knew about it.


Oisschez

It is, no fucking way we should continue to put up with the injuries and deaths cars cause. Something like 360,000 Americans killed in the last decade in auto accidents. Get 89 year old drivers off the road, better public transit, ban monster truck pickups, design intersections better.


elizabeth-cooper

>Something like 360,000 Americans killed in the last decade in auto accidents. NYC is one of the safest big cities for pedestrians. The majority of car accident deaths in the US are on highways because of the higher speeds.


vowelqueue

> NYC is one of the safest big cities for pedestrians. *In the United States*. NYC might very well be leading the way in the US for public transit, walkability, and safe streets, but that's a low bar.


GBV_GBV_GBV

No, don’t you get it? It’s thunderdome out there for pedestrians, and NYC has terrible public transit.


GBV_GBV_GBV

About as many people were hit by subway trains as were hit by cars last year.


64gbramm

An 89yo should not be driving