There’s a reason for seniors’ driving tests

I must respond to the opinions of those opposed to continuing to require seniors to take road tests. I do not argue with statistics showing seniors have lower accident rates, but I believe that this is in part due to other drivers having to be more defensive when on the roads with them.

I frequently drive in Sun City Huntley, and can attest to the poor driving habits of many senior drivers. When taken as a portion of total drivers on the road, their numbers may be small. However, when in a situation where elderly are the predominant drivers, there is a preponderance who seem to be unaware of other drivers and pedestrians, lack proper lane usage and turn signals, do not follow speed limits and have difficulty parking properly.

I ask politicians who are considering repealing the testing requirement to spend a day at the Woodstock driver’s testing station or other locations with large senior populations, observing people who have great difficulty getting in and out of their cars and/or simply lifting their feet to walk. Would those politicians feel secure if their child or grandchild darted in front of a car driven by someone with limited mobility and slow reaction times? I once overheard a gentleman complaining that he didn’t understand why the evaluator penalized him for hitting the curb as he does that “all the time and it’s no big deal.” In today’s paper there was an article about an 88-year-old mistaking the accelerator for the brake.

As a person approaching the age when I will be subjected to more frequent testing, I have no issue with spending a couple hours making sure I do not endanger myself or others. Just because Illinois is the only state requiring this does not make us wrong. It means the other states aren’t doing it right.

Jo Buxbaum

Palatine