Aging, Driving and the Eye Test

In our society, driving a car is more than a necessity. Driving is freedom, mobility, status and youth. Many older drivers fear the loss of driving privileges more than injury or illness.

I’m thinking about this today because I just renewed my driver’s license. There has been talk for years about retesting older drivers. Some say drivers over the age of (pick a number – I’ve heard ages as low as 55) should have to take 'on the road' driving tests again, a test most drivers take once, when they get their first license in their teenage years. I’m not sure about any other state, but here in Maryland, the only test one takes to renew a driver’s license is the eye test.

Put your head here, look inside and read line four.

OK, you pass. Sit over there and wait for your number to be called.

I passed? Oh, please! I know I could only clearly see three fourths of the letters on line four. I have been wearing glasses while driving for thirty years, but I always remove them when I take the eye test. I have passed this test in five states, including four or five times in Maryland.

Don’t worry. I can see where I’m going, even without the glasses … in the daylight; less so at night. But I always wear them when driving, even though I don’t legally have to.

But it scares me that I can pass this test. I wonder how many others are OKd to drive without the restriction that requires eye correction. Maybe this is why traffic is so bad around here.