Evening star., 1939-01-12

Notebook Of Science Progress
In Field, Laboratory
And Study
By Thomas r. Henry.
The elderly driver is likely to be
dangerous driver.
Not only are his reactions slower in
emergencies but his training has been
poorer. He formed his driving habits
in day when there was less and slower
traffic and often cannot adjust to
changed conditions.
The case against the motorist in his
late flfties and sixties is presented in
the December issue, of the Scientific
Monthly by DR.. Harry r. De Silva,
Harvard University psychologist. 1t
has been lost sight of in the past, he
says, because Of the flood of indictments
against the flaming youth type of drivers
who are responsible for far more than
their proportionate share Of accidents.
DR.. De Silva has gathered from various
sources an imposing array of statistics.
The accident rate, these show, reaches
its peak for drivers in their early twen-
ties with their responsibility and yearn-
ing for speed. It declines to low point
for motorists in their forties, despite the
fact that they cover much more mileage
and show the greatest proportion Of
arrests for intoxication behind the wheel.
Then the accident rate starts up again
until, at go, 1t is at the same peak as
at IS.
With better training and more rigid
laws, 1t Is pointed out the younger
group of drivers should become safer but
the older group will constitute q menace
out of proportion to their numbers for
some years to come.
More than quarter Of the population
Of the United States" he says, rs over
40 years Of age and this proportion Is
steadily increasing. Safety education is
our public school system. Accordingly
1t will be years before present-day
safety minded children will replace our
less safety-minded adults and improve
the accident situation.
I'm the meantime, our unsolicited
drivers who were trained on 30-mile- per-
hour cars will have to be retrained to
drive their improved vehicles safely at
the higher rate Of speed prevailing on
our highways. Most State license laws
were put into operation only recently
and persons then operating motor We
hicles were exempted from examination.
Hence considerable portion Of our adult
driver population never has had its
ability or right to drive questioned.
Another fact commonly ignored is
that our elderly motorists learned to
drive relatively late in life, when their
habits were rather inflexible Elderly
persons learn more slowly and when
they have attained a minimum standard
OF skill are more apt to be satisfied than
youngsters. Many have never pushed on
to the higher level Of skill reached by
presept-day young people, so many Of
whom receive rigorous training followed
by an examination.
add to this the fact that elderly per-
sons learned to drive with old, noisy, slow
cars with high seats and corresponding
easy visibility on upcongested highways
and one sees reason for present-day
maladjustments among our old-timers"
youthful operators" he continues,
"unquestionably have the greatest ac-
cident incidence The proportion of
operators killed represents by far the
largest of any age group. They drive
more rapidly and travel farther than
older drivers. They have less insight
into their own faults and the possible
defects Of their cars. Their ability to
respond to complex situations and emer-
gencies is not as good as 1t will be in
later years. Their chief redeeming virtue
is that they have keener eyes, more
sensitive ears, quicker reactions and a
better coordination.
"Middle-aged drivers, having more ex-
~perience and more responsibilities, have
better accident rate in spite Of the fact
that they drive almost as fast and as
far as the younger group. An outstand-
ing paradox is that during the period
OF least accidents-45 to so years-we
find the greatest incidence of alcoholic
drivers.
"The outstanding characteristic of the
elderly driver is decrease In sensory
capacity and motor coordination. On
the other hand, he has had much more
experience than the younger driver and
should be better aware of his own short
comings as we'll as the defects in his car
and the hazards in the road. Older per-
sons possess keener sense of social
responsibility, which is at the basis of
driving courtesy and caution.
Although they may not themselves
get into so many accidents on account
of their slower speeds, more leisurely
habits of turning corners, and more
cautious operations at intersections, they
may cause others to have accidents by
hindering the steady flow of traffic.
Persons in their f1fties and sixties
cannot be legislated into safety. Neither
can they be browbeaten to drive more
safely. Rather they must be approached
IL =, ,411 rrSv, Nn