When I see the standard of driving displayed by some of the younger drivers on our roads that have presumably just passed a driving test.
I think I should be capable of driving until I am about 120.
Landy

-- Edited by landy on Tuesday 18th of October 2022 10:14:40 PM

We'll be getting rid of our caravan when I turn 75, 15 years of traveling all over Australia with it is enough for us, particularly as we've been bush camping since the 70's.
We think about 85 would see the end of our driving days, but who knows.
We have good public transport links just a few paces away & a shopping centre 15 minutes walk away.
The lady next door died recently aged 103, she drove until she was 98.
Before she lost her license, when she was driving it looked like the car was driving her & she was hanging onto the steering wheel, which was a bit of a worry.

If I had a chauffeur, I'd stop driving today.

Depends on the individual, and like the advert says the decision may need to be made by a family member; because if you have cognitive decline you might not know it's happening.
Every situation and person is different.

I hope I'll know when it's time, possibly the first time I confuse the accelerator for the break, if I ever do, or when I start crunching the gears (I drive a manual). I do know that I'm finding it harder to drive at night (I'm 68) so I avoid it when ever possible at home and make road trip plans to always get there before dark. I think that recently learning new off road skills and using them has sharpened up my abilities and refreshed the old ones so hopefully I'll be good for another 30yrs. I hope so because I can't afford a chauffeur.

However, I know of retirees where I used to live who use 2 feet to drive automatics and that scares me.

Wannabe nomad wrote:

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>>I hope I'll know when it's time, possibly the first time I confuse the accelerator for the break

I've done that a couple of times, but 30 or 40 years past. That is a normal human mistake not a sudden portent of impending senility.

 

 

>>However, I know of retirees where I used to live who use 2 feet to drive automatics and that scares me.

We have two feet therefore I would have thought the obvious way to drive a car with two foot-pedals is to allocate one pedal to each foot? It is the way I have been driving automatics for decades. Why would you not?

Drivers licences requirements for the over 75s does vary a bit from state to state.
I think it is a common trend that the majority of us dont want to lose our independence by surrendering our licence.
Doctors do have a say in some instances but they may be put under pressure by the licensee or the family.
I think it is a complex situation.

Here are the current regulations on the subject.

https://www.seniors.com.au/car-insurance/discover/driving-licence-regulations-for-seniors

If a qualified doctor proclaims you capable of driving a motor vehicle under the relevant regulations then what has your age got to do with it.
You can be 25 and totally incapable of driving a motor vehicle and be a 95 yr old with an accident free record.
I watched a 95 year old last night on TV breaking track records and winning medals, but they can't drive a motor vehicle because of their age?
We need to have a system in place where people are assessed individually instead of the one cap fits all policy.

People are generally very quick to suggest that other people should lose their driving licences.

I always use two feet in an automatic when in a coffined area as it gives you a lot more precise control of the vehicle, as soon as I'm in the open I revert back to one foot. This is something I learnt to do when I was doing a lot of 4 wheel driving and you do not want the car to suddenly jump forward when climbing over an obstacle, or rolling 2 inches to far might drop you in a ditch.

I also think that modern technology and the automatic braking being installed in newer cars is going to go a long way towards reducing accidents caused by confusing the peddles in an automatic.

I did an advanced driving course with pro racing drivers and it was suggested and recommended that a driver should use both feet.

The theory was that the reaction time was lessened when the driver used his right foot for for the *go* pedal and the left foot for the *woah* pedal.

This reaction time was actually demonstrated with a test of both methods.

The addition of a clutch pedal confused the issue a bit unless we are really lucky we generally only have to legs that reach the pedals 

Wannabe nomad wrote:

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I stand corrected, I only drive an auto when occasionally in a hire car and I figured you were supposed to use one foot so you couldn't by mistake press the accelerator and the break together.

However (excuse my ignorance) if we are really supposed to use both feet driving an automatic why aren't the pedals further apart, giving less opportunities for people to confuse the accelerator for the break, because this seems to happen a lot in shopping centres and the like and it's not just old people doing it.

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 From the instructors I had at the driving course it was not suggested that it was a crime to use one foot in an automatic vehicle.

It was only suggested to use two feet as a method of reducing reaction times.

Most of us dont drive under what might be racing conditions when going to the shops.

Phew! I think I need a brake. 

Reminds me of that Rodney Dangerfield line "when I die I want to go peacefully in my sleep, just like my grandfather, not yelling and screaming like the passengers in his car".