This article presents an interview with UC Berkeley Traffic Safety Center Director David Ragland, focusing on findings from an ongoing study of older travelers' driving behavior in Sonoma County, California. The study is seeking to understand how older drivers make decisions about if and when they drive and what kinds of outcomes are associated with their different behaviors. One main goal is to tease out the significance of physical and medical conditions independent of the driver's age, to see what effect they have on driving ability and safety. Behaviors that the study will examine include: drivers' decision to continue driving or to stop or limit driving; the limitations they experience while driving; the amount they drive; and the number of adverse outcomes they experience such as traffic violations and crashes. A major preliminary finding is that vision is a reason people cease to drive or limit their driving, which suggests there could be significant gains with interventions in car design and roadway lighting.
Abstract