Argumentative Essay On Elderly Drivers

How many people die every year from car accidents? How many of those people qualify as careless teenagers? Nearly 1.3 million people die each year in car accidents, which is on average 3,287 deaths per day. Young drivers between the ages of fifteen and twenty account for sixty percent of these accidents. For almost a century, the age for teenagers to be allowed to drive on public roads without supervision has been sixteen, resulting in a higher death rate due to the carelessness of young drivers in the United States. For example, as stated by the Free Personal Injury Help Center, one in every three teens says they text or email while driving: the number one cause of deaths among all drivers. The amount of young and old drivers on the road

The driving age should be lowered to 14 or 15 years old because people should know how to drive a vehicle by then.People need the experience it will improve their driving skills before they get older and it will make it easier for tennagers to get to school and to their job because it will make them understand responsibility.

Driver’s Education courses are important for a new driver.  Drivers Education is proven to help young driver’s become familiar with driving and to learn important defensive driving techniques.  Our mission at Greenbrier High School should be to incorporate a Driver’s Education course into the curriculum for their students.  Teens from the ages 16-19 have the highest accident rate in the nation.  It is important for teens to complete a Driver’s Ed course so they can learn road safety rules, traffic rules and regulations, and defensive driving strategies.

Elders are great people, but their driving skill may not be too great. Elders should take a driving test every year, for one reason there would be a decrease in car accidents. Many people have been killed by the lack of the elderly peoples driving skills, also because elders should be reminded how to drive because of their fragile health.

In 2013, more than 2,500 teenagers died in the United States from motor vehicle crash injuries. Such injuries are by far the leading public health problem for young people 13-19 years old (Insurance Institute for Highway Safety [IIHS], 2014). Drivers are not the only ones at risk. Teenagers who are passengers in others vehicles make up a startling 87% of the fatality statistic. Lack of driving experience, disregard for traffic laws, and quick access to full driving privileges contribute to teen death. To reduce teen driving fatalities, successful completion of driver education classes provided by public and private schools should be mandatory for all teenagers prior to receiving their driving permit.

As you all know, getting a head start in life is not an easy task. Obstacles are notorious for popping up when we least expect and even when we are utterly unprepared. Often at times, I have overheard my fellow students asking, "why do we need school?" The answer I have personally come up with is that school is and was designed to prepare students for the real world. A large portion of students of Selinsgrove Area High School, myself included, do not have access to Driver Educational classes, or commonly known as Driver's Ed. The reason I bring this up is that if the purpose of school is to prepare oneself for adulthood and one of the vital necessities a young adult must be acquainted with is the ability to drive an automobile, then why is Driver's Ed not a given class here?

Your senior loved one should not be driving if they have not had their eyes checked in the last two years. You should also make certain that the windows and mirrors in the vehicles are kept clean to insure they can see properly out of them. If you notice any hearing difficulties, address this with your senior loved one so they can make sure they can hear well enough to respond when driving.

Although many who support lowering the driving age believe that there are immature and distracted drivers in every age group, there's no arguing with science. It is scientifically proven that sixteen-year-old children are far less qualified than further developed individuals in terms of brain development. According to a study conducted by National Institutes of Mental Health, teenage drivers are not only vulnerable because they lack experience behind the wheel, but also because of the unique makeup of the adolescent brain. The brain is at its peak in terms of acquiring and retaining new information during adolescence. However, the areas needed for impulse control and mediating emotional responses are the last to develop and may not reach full

Majority of the information found relates to medical testing (their physical ability to drive). The South Australian My Licence website states that “You will be sent a Certificate of Fitness in the mail and asked to visit a medical practitioner for a medical assessment if: you have a medical condition recorded against your driver’s licence that is subject to a periodic review or you are aged 70 or older and hold a licence for a class of vehicle other than a car e.g. heavy vehicle or motorbike.” The same source also goes on to state that a practical driving assessment is then required “if your medical practitioner feels it is necessary to help determine your fitness to drive. It is a short drive of about 30 minutes; it is not the same as the test that new learner drivers undergo to obtain their provisional licence…. It primarily looks at the ability of the driver to control the vehicle and demonstrate safe driving on the road in light to medium traffic while complying with road rules.” This source validates this key finding as it is evident that there is no compulsory ability test for car class licence holders as they age to elderly drivers, however there is the possibility of sitting a test dependent on medical conditions. This in turn helps to answer as to whether elderly drivers should have road rules specifically applying to

Some people think that seniors should be required to retake the driving test because they think that with age comes decreased vision, hearing, and reaction time. This is certainly true to a certain extent because this occurs to different people at different speeds. I think that once a person reaches about 75 they should have annual appointments for vision and hearing tests, and if they don’t do to well then they should be required to retake the driving test.

The loss of physical strength makes it difficult to maneuver a motor vehicle. A Driver is required to use necessary body parts such as their head and neck to check for blind spots before changing lanes and their hands and arms to grip the steering wheel. Elderly driver’s reflexes are much slower than when they were younger. Their response time to traffic signals, reacting to unexpected pedestrians and other motorists moving in front of them is slower.

Lees et al. (2007) asked the participants to verbally express what they saw in terms of landmarks (e.g restaurants). While the participants explained the landmarks, the experimenter assessed all the driving faults that occurred and tallied the number of correct landmarks that were acknowledged (Lees et al., 2007). Without being biased towards elderly drivers, Lees et al. (2007) found a common factor. It was not so much that older people could not detect change; it was the speed to which they could react to it (Lees et al., 2007). It seemed as though elders are cognitively busy both assessing the change and deciding what to in regards to it. Lees et al. (2007) acknowledged that people of all ages are susceptible to traffic crashes and proposed that people be aware of the need of attention in driving. Lees et al. (2007) also explained that when researching on different ages, specific stimuli may be considered more attractive to one individual more so than the other.

“An eighty-six year old man killed ten people and injured more than seventy when he drove his Buick into a crowded farmers market in California. In Florida, an eighty-four year old woman drove her car through a window of a Sears and into a cash register and employee” (Murphy). Sadly enough, instances like these are becoming more and more prevalent and require immediate action. It is imperative that a more comprehensive approach be taken when deciding the competence of elderly drivers. Laws must be put into action to mandate and administer testing and re-examining of the skills and eligibility of this group. Equally important, we must consider those who will no longer be able to drive, and ensure their transportation and occupational needs

Many concerns have been expressed about the potential dangers elderly drivers present when operating a vehicle. Mental and physical capabilities begin to decline as a person ages. When their health deteriorates, the well being of other individuals on the road is at stake. Many elderly drivers should not drive due to their medical history and the fact that they might suffer from possible side effects from taking multiple prescription medicines. In addition, local organizations and neighbors can provide transportation for the elderly to keep them from endangering themselves and others. The threat senior citizens create when driving can be avoided if they are tested to ensure their competence as a driver.

Granny, I know you’ve never been in an accident, but Lord knows how many you’ve caused! Although I love my grandmother dearly, I must admit that a few of my grey hairs are courtesy of her driving. As the years passed, my grandmother’s driving progressively got worse. However, there is no test administered to the elderly which determines whether or not they are fit to drive. While my Granny was creating mayhem on the streets, I realized how much a drivers’ test for the elderly was needed. Elderly drivers impose possible threats on others, as well as themselves, and could also be paying excess money on unnecessary insurance.