Drivers in 70+ Age Group Safer Than 35-54 Age Group

[Delta]

My own grandmother got pulled over for doing 80 mph in a school zone.

Heh, this is my 86 year old grandmother to a "T". Her driving is getting worse, but still drives like a bat outta Hell. She can't turn her head to look properly anymore and it's downright scary. There's several battle scars on her Jeep and always claims someone got her in a parking lot. It's like no Grandma, that's safety yellow from a pole at Dollar General...

 

[4WD]

Heh, this is my 86 year old grandmother to a "T". Her driving is getting worse, but still drives like a bat outta Hell. She can't turn her head to look properly anymore and it's downright scary. There's several battle scars on her Jeep and always claims someone got her in a parking lot. It's like no Grandma, that's safety yellow from a pole at Dollar General...

Vehicles are extensions of people … even late in life. I remember in the 2012 movie “41” he still liked to push those big Mercs behind that nice boat of his

 

[PimTac]

I agree. I have never looked at my phone while driving it’s always in my pocket or charging while I am driving. I don’t believe in not listening to the rules especially since they made phones a primary offense while driving last year in my state same with seatbelts. I live in the somewhat rural area and almost have been hit head on several times by distracted drivers not paying attention. My dad isn’t the best about staying off his phone and then he swerves in and out of traffic trying to put his Bluetooth on it always scares me to death. I have never been in an accident except when I was a baby but I’ve never had one while I’m driving.

Is he trying to put his Bluetooth earpiece in while driving? One could do that before starting out. Other than that Bluetooth is very seamless. He shouldn’t be distracted by that.

 

[AutoMechanic]

Is he trying to put his Bluetooth earpiece in while driving? One could do that before starting out. Other than that Bluetooth is very seamless. He shouldn’t be distracted by that.

Yes while driving lol he is bad about looking at his phone as well

 

[IndyIan]

Also the article says the number of reported crashes of all types is lower for 70+ age group than the 35-54...
I think the main thing is not driving during commuting hours, and busy holidays. Lots of people seem to think its worth their life and others to make high risk passes trying to get somewhere 5% faster... I guess in your 70's you know better, but some younger people still think they are special and should get to drive like there is no one else is on the road.
In Ontario, I think there's grounds for a lawsuit against the Ontario Provincial Police for not enforcing the speed limits. You can drive your whole life 20km/h over and never get stopped, so if someone actually drives the speed limit, some people go insane and do all sorts of crazy passing... I'm sure this directly kills dozens of people a year.

 

[Danh]

70+ year olds drive so crappy and slow that everyone around them gets into accidents from frustration.

Perhaps. But they know the difference between adverbs and adjectives.

 

[bbhero]

Also the article says the number of reported crashes of all types is lower for 70+ age group than the 35-54...
I think the main thing is not driving during commuting hours, and busy holidays. Lots of people seem to think its worth their life and others to make high risk passes trying to get somewhere 5% faster... I guess in your 70's you know better, but some younger people still think they are special and should get to drive like there is no one else is on the road.
In Ontario, I think there's grounds for a lawsuit against the Ontario Provincial Police for not enforcing the speed limits. You can drive your whole life 20km/h over and never get stopped, so if someone actually drives the speed limit, some people go insane and do all sorts of crazy passing... I'm sure this directly kills dozens of people a year.

Great, great post here ^^^^^^^^^^^

It is speed deferential and Indy car or NASCAR passing attempts that lead to very bad hard, high impact accidents...

If you are going 65 mph and virtually everyone else is going 80... It is a tough circumstance. And 15-20 mph may not sound like a big difference.... But it is actually quite large.

Go watch old NASCAR races at Darlington, Rockingham or Atlanta... Guys with new tires are going 15-18 mph faster PER lap... vs guys with 40 laps on their tires.... And guess when many wrecks happened during those races... Green flag pit stops... And the speed differential between guys with fresh tires and guys on old tires...

Highway driving is no different... Speed variation is a big starting point for high speed accidents. Add inpatient championship drivers who think they are at the Daytona 500... Bad things happen.

Now I typically drive 78-79 in a 70 mph zone... And there are times where doing that I'm passing a lot of other vehicles. But I do not tailgate... I roll out of the gas to let people in front of me at time even if they were going slower than me... But if they are going to pass someone at a decent clip... I let them get in front of me and let it be. I have learned to try to work with others around me. That helps a lot. Just the other night there was a cat going like 87-88 maybe more mph... Hauling donkey in the right lane... We were catching two slower vehicles in that right lane. I was in the left passing lane and catching those two slower vehicles at a good clip... I'd bet they were doing 70-71 mph.. The way it was going to time out if I maintained 79 mph... That cat would gave been jammed up really, really really bad... So I completely rolled out of the gas... Down to 70 mph... Crackhead Jr hauled donkey and go over in front of me and passed those two slow vehicles and continued on... I quickly hit the gas and got back up to my 79 mph pace and quickly passed those two slower vehicles in the right lane. If I had maintained my pace in that situation... It could have caused a wreck. Or at minimum crackhead Jr would have been really mad at me... Even though in all reality in my opinion that really would have been his own doing... But morons are not going to see it that way. Better off to completely roll out of the gas and make it easier for him to go on versus me maintaining my pace and causing a bad deal to potentially happen.

Be patient... Let it go... Roll out of the gas if need be... Cut morons a break even if they are really dumb- again within reason... But one can do that more often they we think at times... Pay attention to traffic coming up behind you - that's a big, big deal... ... Don't hold others up- though that is within reason...

 

[Klarque420]

I see people of all ages do stupid stuff, primarily boomers I see on cellphones and driving like clowns.

 

[jeepman3071]

Also the article says the number of reported crashes of all types is lower for 70+ age group than the 35-54...
I think the main thing is not driving during commuting hours, and busy holidays. Lots of people seem to think its worth their life and others to make high risk passes trying to get somewhere 5% faster... I guess in your 70's you know better, but some younger people still think they are special and should get to drive like there is no one else is on the road.
In Ontario, I think there's grounds for a lawsuit against the Ontario Provincial Police for not enforcing the speed limits. You can drive your whole life 20km/h over and never get stopped, so if someone actually drives the speed limit, some people go insane and do all sorts of crazy passing... I'm sure this directly kills dozens of people a year.

That's hilarious.

 

[supton]

I dunno, young people have reflexes and can react, and expect to react. 70 years might not have that and thus have to adapt. Makes for a bad mix IMO.

Oh well I guess this problem will slowly fade away, the upcoming generation isn't big on driving, and with the various driver aids, coupled with the inevitable autonomous cars (maybe not now but eventually) I suspect this problem will turn into yesterday's news.

 

[OVERKILL]

Update on this thread because of an experience I had yesterday. I'm headed South on Park St in the below picture, having just left the lights at Albert. There's a silver Honda CR-V nosing-out of Bob's Watch Repair looking to be turning North as I approach. He noses out further, now into the curb lane (there are 4 lanes) as I'm closing in on his position, he's looking right at me, mouth agape in that kinda vacant/spaced-out look that the extreme elderly get on their face, and he then pulls right into my lane and I have to brake hard. He's still staring at me with that look on his face, I lay on the horn, his look doesn't change, he just noses into the North-bound lane now, doesn't even check that direction to make sure it is clear, and then eventually starts to move again and completes his turn. He stopped a total of 4x during this total train wreck.

Clearly, this guy has no business driving. When you can't handle pulling out of a parking lot in light traffic because it taxes your remaining cognitive function beyond its capability, it's time to hang-up those spurs.

 

[WylieCoyote]

Update on this thread because of an experience I had yesterday. I'm headed South on Park St in the below picture, having just left the lights at Albert. There's a silver Honda CR-V nosing-out of Bob's Watch Repair looking to be turning North as I approach. He noses out further, now into the curb lane (there are 4 lanes) as I'm closing in on his position, he's looking right at me, mouth agape in that kinda vacant/spaced-out look that the extreme elderly get on their face, and he then pulls right into my lane and I have to brake hard. He's still staring at me with that look on his face, I lay on the horn, his look doesn't change, he just noses into the North-bound lane now, doesn't even check that direction to make sure it is clear, and then eventually starts to move again and completes his turn. He stopped a total of 4x during this total train wreck.

Clearly, this guy has no business driving. When you can't handle pulling out of a parking lot in light traffic because it taxes your remaining cognitive function beyond its capability, it's time to hang-up those spurs.

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I feel ya. This is the stuff I see around here all the time. They look right at you, and as if the vehicle moving toward them at 45mph is completely invisible, they hit the gas.

I had an oldster pull up behind me while waiting to exit the Walmart parking lot. There are 3 lanes: 1 incoming, 2 leaving. I was in the leaving lane, in the center, which turns left, or goes straight. Initially, he pulled up to my left and stopped. A car trying to enter WalMart came nose-to-nose with him, and he backed up and got behind me, with his left signal now on. The light turned green, and I idled out into the intersection to wait for oncoming traffic to clear, so I could turn left. He followed, yanked the wheel left, and went around me, turning in front of all the oncoming traffic. He looked to be about 70 as his gray head zipped past me, horns and headlights blaring on the oncoming car. I think he was completely oblivious to any kind of rules of the road.....he had someplace to be.

I was then able to turn left, so I got behind him and dialed 911. I told the dispatcher that the guy I'm following is going to kill someone pretty soon, so they might want to have a conversation with him about what just took place. They intercepted us about 5 miles down the road.