Dick Van Dyke has a car crash at 97yo, he shouldn't even be driving imo.

[Advancedpie]

As great a man as he is, the time to stop was long before now.

How can you possibly know? What if the car crash wasn’t even his fault?

I read that he lost control on a slippery road.

I don't think there can be a one size fits all for when someone should stop doing something. Some people are more than capable right up until they die, others should stop much, much earlier.

@Advancedpie what were the circumstances of the crash? Weather , speed , lack of skill , other driver ?

Who’s to say it was his fault ?

He crashed into a gate whilst he was driving.

At 97 your reaction times are going to be so slow compared with when you are 30 or 40. I don't think people should be driving over 75 and include my dad in that.

But some 75+ year olds have better reaction times than some 20 year olds. It's not a blanket rule.

I think people should have to sit a driving test every 10 years anyways.

I'm glad he is OK. It may be time to stop driving, although that is easy to say when you are not facing it.

Thing is, many people of that age are perfectly fit and healthy and absolutely capable of driving. And driving very slowly and carefully. Plus for some it's their way of connecting with the outside world. A driving test for all every 10 years might be a better solution.

I’m in shock that he’s still alive!

Glad he’s ok and didn’t hurt anyone.

I agree OP - your reactions at 97, even if you're fit and healthy for that age, aren't going to be anywhere near as quick as people much younger than you (again, providing they are fit and healthy), they just aren't. I'd have mandatory driving tests every 10 years, and more frequently after 80.

I think it's a bit more nuanced than that. My father (over 75) is still driving more than competently with decent reaction times and control. My mother (under 75) is less competent and we are starting to worry about her driving.
Perhaps a test every 5 years after retirement age would be a good idea?

Drivers should have to renew licences at frequent intervals, starting long before retirement age.

I hope he is ok.

Really? There are many 97 yos fit ,healthy and perfectly able to drive with no issues?

Define many.

and you know this how? It was reported the road was slippery and he skidded into a gate.

The reaction time issue is not tied to age. Experienced middle aged drivers have faster reaction times than young drivers in their late teens and early 20s, because they have developed a sixth sense about what people will do.

Anyway if the ground was slippery, reaction times don't come into it, anyone could have hit the gate.

Maybe he could borrow Mary’s umbrella and just float around in future

Bit of a sweeping statement! There’s a massive difference between a 75 year old and a 97 year old. Indeed the latter is old enough to be a parent of the former! Whilst I don’t disagree that there are a number of very elderly individuals who definitely shouldn’t be on the roads for their own protection as much as anyone else’s but it needs to be assessed on a case by case basis. My DM and her partner are nearly 80 and both are more competent drivers than some people half their age.

… and the road conditions? Did he swerve? Would you have had the same accident in the same circumstances Has he undergone a recent driving test? Has his doctor cleared him to drive?

You know none of this.

There were pictures on the news a couple of weeks ago of lots of people sliding off the icy roads when the weather suddenly turned. Were they all too old to be driving, too?

Are you for real?

I'm willing to bet there are very few 97 yo people capable of competently driving.

Maybe Dick is one of them. The police can have a look at that.

I do get pretty pushed off with very elderly people driving massive SUVs round my way very poorly. Happy to prevent their own deaths in their tanks, but happy to make it more likely my kid dies. One of the many reasons to get these vehicles off the streets.

Pissed off!

Many 97 year olds are perfectly fit and healthy? Are they really? None of my relatives have made it to that age, sadly. And all of them had ailments from early to mid 80s. I would think it a rare 97 year old who had no eyesight issues, no arthritis or other weakness affecting their joints, no slowed reaction times that made driving in slippery conditions more risky than your average 40-50 year old.

He's lucky it's just a gate and not a chim chim cheree.
(or a person)