How Cars Have Evolved to Become Senior Friendly
There is a certain sense of confidence and freedom when driving. That’s why it’s natural for seniors to have the desire to continue driving throughout their golden years. However, there are several real risks involved with driving at an old age. Senior Comfort Guide previously discussed the many worrying variables, which include vision impairment, pain, stiffness, and fatigue. The gist of the post was that senior citizens should acknowledge age-related factors that can compromise their driving skills and risk their safety. But the good news is — older adults do not necessarily have to give up driving. There are safety measures they can take in order to reduce the risks of causing road accidents, which the same article discusses. Some of those include avoiding busy areas and nighttime driving.
Aside from these precautions, automakers have also stepped up to produce senior-friendly vehicles. For instance, newer car models are equipped with safety features that can help support a person’s driving. Forbes contributor Jim Gorzelany listed some of these useful features, which aim to make driving easier and more manageable for older adults. These include the push-button start (or a key-less start) which is useful for drivers suffering from arthritis, and proximity alarms that go off when a driver is too close to another vehicle.
Built-in safety features are enough on their own, but senior citizens can take road safety a step further by investing in additional technology. For instance, GPS navigation can help provide smooth journeys for older adults who may have trouble reading signs. The feature is mostly offered by apps like Waze, but it can also be found in on-board vehicle devices. Many commercial trucks are fitted with electronic logging devices (ELDs). These are mainly used to record driving hours, but they also have other useful functions such as GPS navigation. Verizon Connect shares that truck navigation can be added as a software solution, depending on the needs of fleet drivers. For example, ELDs can show routes that are safe for heavy vehicles and are less congested. NBC News notes that the average age of commercial truck drivers is 55, and is rising rapidly. Therefore, senior truck drivers who have not yet retired from their jobs may then find ELDs a welcome change, since they can make driving more efficient and safe.
Do note that the technologies listed above are only meant to aid driving and are not actually designed to replace the driver’s ability. Therefore, older adults who have conditions like Parkinson’s disease, dementia, or very poor vision and hearing may have to forego driving altogether. That’s because these features, advanced as they may be today, won’t be enough to keep them safe. However, the future may get brighter for senior drivers, as companies are aiming to perfect self-driving technology. Many experts claim that seniors will benefit most from driverless cars since, unlike car safety features, these vehicles will execute most of the driving decisions. Drivers will only need to monitor them at all times.
For more information about senior care, be sure to visit some of our other posts on Senior Comfort Guide. We cover a wide range of senior living topics aside from driving.
Article specially written for SeniorComfortGuide.com
By: Fatima Sophia
