Does driving need an upper age limit?

How old is too old when it comes to driving? An 86 year-old man drove his car the wrong way down Auckland’s North-Western motorway on Saturday night. Ewen Donaldson died in Auckland Hospital on Sunday, after he drove his Mitsubishi Galant onto the motorway via the Te Atatu off ramp, before colliding with at least six other vehicles near Patiki Rd. Mr Donaldson was driving on an expired licence. At present drivers aged 75 years and over need to renew their license every two to five years and may be required to sit an On-road Safety Test if recommended by a doctor. Should we simply apply an upper age limit for all drivers?

Latest opinion

By patric

look it was a one off,some silly old fart without a driving licence,took a car and killed himself.so????????????the law as it stands is ok! i would be more worried about the silly young fools,who seem to kill themselves and others at a more alarming rate,there the ones that need looking at.

(12) (0)

By Jeffrey Huffadine

As for that unlicenced 86year old driver even if he was still alive he would or maynot have to resit his driverslicence but now that he is dead I for one totally disagree with some of the other opinionists.The government and its stupid laws don't even work and I don't think that there should be an upper age limit despite the fact that I don't drive a motorvehicle myself.

(0) (0)

By Paul Le Bas

Too many of our young ones are not taught to drive as they should be Texting on mobiles has killed so many here in Perth

(4) (1)

By David

I am an Occupational Therapist and the service i work for completes Driving Assessments. We compelte an 'off-road' assessment where a person's cognitive ability to drive is measured. We also complete 'on road' assessments where we assess how a person manages to drive in a variety of situations.

Age alone is not the factor that should determine if people should stop driving. It is their medical fitness to drive.
I have found that some people in thier late nineties are just as capabale of driving safely as 'younger' drivers are.

(4) (0)

By betty will

Poor girl head down working hard ..didin't see it coming maybe he wanted to end his life with a bang.

(4) (0)

By Steve

Once again it takes deaths before people are willing to take a problem seriously.
This guy was driving for about three years on an expired licence - had he been able to get his car registration renewed in his own name?

Classes and testing need to be mandatory for younger drivers and elderly drivers, otherwise there will be just more deaths.

(6) (1)