Dear editor,
The writer “Name Withheld — If I had a Magic Wand (Record, Dec. 16) seems to have an attitude problem concerning age and driving ability — as if one had anything to do with the other.
Surely it is reckless driving behaviour rather than drivers of a certain age that we must eliminate. Such a prejudicial attitude does nothing to improve people’s driving habits.
In my opinion, elimination of dangerous driving and drivers goes much further than those measures the writer calls for.
I disagree with Sharon Lacey that driving is simply a privilege. More importantly, it is a right, and as such, just like citizenship, it can be revoked.
I would put forward the following measures:
1. New drivers must pass a battery of psychological and personality inventories even before being issued temporary permits.
2. Begin monitoring drivers’ abilities and physical health at age 50 years instead of at 80.
3. Establish a squad of drivers with excellent records to report dangerous driving incidents; calling in to police detachments, the plate number and make of vehicle(s) involved and thus establishing a driver profile to which law enforcement can refer.
If this seems like vigilantism, it is unfortunately what is needed in these years of exploding vehicle populations and ever-rising insurance rates.
B.L. Saunders,
Courtenay
