TOLEDO, Ohio — It’s Older Driver Safety Awareness Week, and in honor of that, Gov. Mike DeWine is unveiling a new webpage with resources for older drivers.
Between 2010 and 2019 the U.S. population of people age 65 and older grew by 34% according to the national highway traffic safety administration. In recent years fatal crashes involving this age group has also increased.
Now, normal aging may increase common risk factors for crashes, such as medical conditions that may impact ability to drive safely.
DeWine and AAA want to offer safety tips for drivers.
Some of those tips are stay aware of your physical change like vision or hearing loss. Do most of your driving during daylight and in good weather and do not drive too slow as this can be as unsafe as speeding.
Although older adults are among the safest drivers on Ohio’s roads, their risk of being injured or killed in a crash increases with age.
"Now they are very safe folks - they are the least likely people to be texting and driving and the least likely folks to be drinking and driving," said Kara Hitchens, AAA public affairs manager. "However they have the highest fatality rates because of their age. When you age, your body gets more frail and much harder to recover and sustain after your injuries such as a car crash."
For more safety tips for drivers before they hit the road and to check out the website DeWine unveiled with all the resources, you can click here.
