Citation

Lange J, McKnight A. Transp. Res. Rec. 1996; 1550: 81-87.

Copyright

(Copyright © 1996, Transportation Research Board, National Research Council, National Academy of Sciences USA, Publisher SAGE Publishing)

DOI

10.3141/1550-11

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

The per-driver accident rates of states with age-based license renewal testing were compared with those of neighboring states without such testing. In states requiring age-based skill testing, tested drivers evidenced significantly lower (7 percent) relative involvement in injury accidents than their counterparts in the comparison states. However, the difference was confined to accident involvement and did not appear in single-vehicle accidents, for which the elderly drivers were more clearly responsible. Although age-based skill testing is associated with accident reduction among the drivers tested, it is unclear if such testing induces the affected individuals to drive less frequently rather than removing unsafe drivers from the road. The results call into question the ability of age-based renewal testing to yield significant reductions in proportions of unsafe drivers among the elderly.

Keywords: Elder drivers; Young drivers

Language: en