To think that maybe elderly drivers need to re take their driving test?

[lonelyonee]

Title is to grab attention although not far off my point. (Long post sorry!).
My AIBU is AIBU to think that if you are driving on the roads which are mostly 30 mph that you should be indeed doing or at the very least near to the speed limit?
I'm sure it is still classed as a minor on your driving test if you are going too slow in a particular speed zone right?

Driving on my way home just, I was stuck behind a car who was being driven by an elderly male. That's fine if he can drive safely (I've seen 100 year old drivers & am aware some are fantastic!). My issue is he was driving EXTREMELY slow, sporadically 25mph then slowing down to around 10mph at points where there was no need to slow down or go that slow. So as this is happening I'm obviously having to slow right down almost to a stop with tonnes of traffic behind me. That's fine, annoying but it's not forever as long as the person behind me is paying attention.
What really made me angry (and made me alert them to being dangerous with my horn) was that he sped up quite a lot on the approach and to go around a very small roundabout with very high visibility to then whack his breaks on as soon as he got around it (not indicating to turn into anywhere or pull over). Obviously I then had to also do the same, and so did the cars behind me.
Now I'm not being funny but it's very dangerous for me to be doing stops like that as I am currently pregnant and it worries me driving with the seatbelt being across my bump area (I do tuck it as far down as possible but it's still a worry for me).
I was not going excessively fast, in fact I was going fairly slow as I was now used to him also going very slowly & was taken aback when he sped up.
The response I had from him and what I presume was his wife was her waving her hand at me as though I was in the wrong.
I have a feeling he was purposely brake checking me here.

Now being pregnant and hormonal I'm aware I may be being unreasonable (hence this post) but to just pop the icing on the cake they had to little stickers in their back window. One read: "I hope your insurance is as good as your brakes" and the other something regarding tailgating.
Makes me wonder if he is a serial slow driver and often gets people alerting him to his dangerous driving? Or they do this for fun in rush hour traffic?

Final question off the back of this to stimulate debate, should pensioners have to re take their test when they reach a certain age? After experiencing this I believe they do indeed.
Thanks for reading. I look forward to your responses/thoughts etc...

I think everyone should legally have to complete a short refresher course every 5 years with the instructor being able to flag if they feel the driver may be unsafe or unfit to drive and that flag should result in the need for a re-test.
It's madness that in all workplaces people must undertake mandatory training in things like manual handling or operating equipment or whatever and yet we are all allowed out on the road,in charge of what can basically be a death machine in the wrong hands, with only one set of training and testing ever.

Whether or not the op leaves enough space, she can't control the space left by people behind her. If she has to slam on her brakes because the car in front is being ridiculous, there is a reasonable chance that the person behind her will crash into her. It might only be a crash into her and behind her, worst case, she'd be pushed into the car in front.

It is dangerous to stop repeatedly for no particular reason. It is important to keep a consistent speed as much as possible (within the speed limit of course) and no brake suddenly where there will be a delay in people seeing you.

To be honest, every driving thread on MN makes me think very few of us would pass a driving test if we took it now. In the 30 years since I passed mine there’s no doubt I’ve picked up some bad habits. The interesting thing is these threads are almost always about people driving too slowly, whereas the really dangerous driving I see is complete lunatics on motorways.

I disagree that elderly are the worst drivers, that award goes to tourists in rental cars who have no idea where they're going, no idea what the speed limit is and forget which way to go round a roundabout .. gives me rage !! (Live outside the UK)
However, my family and I had to intervene and stop my dgps from driving, their reaction speeds had slowed so much. They were hurt but it was necessary, not only for their safety but for everybody else on the road.
I also think that older drivers are more rude, they can't seem to see what they're doing wrong. I had to emergency brake coming off a roundabout the other day because the idiot in front just stopped. I beeped, he got out and started hurling abuse at me, then his wife got out and joined in, telling me how young I was and I didn't know anything about driving .. I was a driving instructor for a few years, so think I have a grasp on the highway code.

The interesting thing is these threads are almost always about people driving too slowly, whereas the really dangerous driving I see is complete lunatics on motorways.
I think it's because few people would argue that driving like a lunatic is acceptable. Few people would argue it's fine to have poor stopping distances, to speed, to weave in and out of traffic etc.

On the other hand (as driving threads generally show), there's quite a lot of drivers who think that excessively slow driving really means someone is cautious, that anyone objecting to someone doing 25 in a 50mph is driving safely and anyone who says otherwise is impatient. They'll claim any recognition that certain skills declining with age is ageist. They'll say that they don't like motorways / lack confidence as a driver so it's totally reasonable to not make appropriate progress, regardless of what the driving test and highway code says.

Then you get the "but insurance stats say young driver... Higher pay outs etc" when nobody disputes the consequences of recklessly fast driving, but they conveniently forget that a lot of lower cost bumps etc will tend to be settled outside of insurance and those things are more likely to happen at slow speeds.

So it's hardly surprising more threads are people exasperated at slow/dawdler drivers than the fast lunatics because there's probably more slower drivers who impact on others on a daily basis than the lunatics on the motorway.

@drinkygin where did I say he didn't drive safely? I've said he drives at the speed limit or below. So if anything, people drive with rage around him and make dangerous moves to overtake him. I said he doesn't change gear, that doesn't hurt anyone else other than his car. People are so quick to name call on here, it puts people off commenting. There are far more worse drivers who are likely to kill someone than my grandad, as he sticks to the speed limit. Not everyone can say that!

@JKScot4 how can the family step up? People have their own lives. I have a family of my own, my parents still work full time. We wouldn't be able to take them everywhere they go on a daily basis, and they wouldn't want us to. I never said he drove dangerously, far from it. He's probably super safe, he just wouldn't pass his test because it takes him an age to change gear.

YANBU! I’ve experienced 2 incidents of dangerous driving by older people recently, had a pensioner very nearly hit me head on coming down the wrong way on a one way system and I was also behind another driver who decided to drop from 50 to 30ish for no reason, causing me to slam my brakes on with a lorry behind me.
I do agree that all drivers should be re tested though and not just the elderly.

@alwayscauseastir you said he wouldn’t pass his test. If he was capable of driving safely and within the Highway Code then he would pass his test.
Slow doesn’t always equal safe. Just because there are other unsafe drivers, doesn’t cancel out the fact your grandfather is an unsafe liability.

@drinkygin but would you pass? Would I? The test has changed so much over the years, bad habits are formed, there's the theory, hazard perception etc. I wouldn't like to think I was taking it again. So does that make me a liability?! If he had an automatic car, I'm sure he would drive like a dream. But would he make it through all those new tests? Probably not, and I'm quite confident that those who have been driving many many years (me included) would struggle too.

Indeed: the hazard perception test, for example, is actually harder for experienced drivers, because you’re more aware of potential hazards, and clicking too soon is held against you. Thus, it’s about learning to pass a test, not actually about driving. But let’s say you get to skip that and just do the practical test over. Even that is mostly about passing a test, as most driving instructors will tell you.

As for saying that just because it’s been a long time since you took your test means you’ve picked up bad habits, I would assume the opposite, unless you’ve been in accidents or gotten cited for something.

I can say with confidence I am capable of passing.

I think there's a case for using something like the hazard perception test as a screening tool for older drivers (you would have to ensure it was carefully controlled and validated, much as cognitive ability tests are for children; you'd also need to eliminate any confounding technological factors like speed of touch screen response). It wouldn't be a pass/fail but anyone whose results fall below a certain threshold could be referred for further assessment, during which any areas of concern could be explored further.

@drinkygin then I hope you happily hand over your licence and volunteer to retake your test when other people deem you a "liability". Best of luck.

I do agree with you.
My road to and from work is a fantastic stretch of road around 5 miles long 50mph and not got any bad bends, but the amount of drivers that go 30mph then dropping down to 20/25mph at a slight bend in the road and breaking every 5 seconds, not caring in the slightest at the long que of traffic backing up behind... most of them are elderly drivers who are too scared/cautious to do the speed limit! No its not a target, but at least do 40/45 somewhere close to the limit

Wow sorry I've been awol since last night, just trying to catch up on the replies! (Been busy at work all day).
@Tvstar @JKScot4 as I've already said multiple times due to people not RTFT I was nowhere near him and left more than enough room because I had a feeling he could be an insurance claimer or something. To be honest to begin with I was just wondering what the hell he was playing at, as I've said I was fine with going a bit slower it was just strange behaviour. I only got annoyed when he'd sped off like a loony over the roundabout then decided to stop out of nowhere, as it was a clear danger to other road users.
Oh and I shouldn't be driving because I'm concerned about my baby's safety? Wow that's a stretch that!
Thanks to everyone else who's making the thread interesting and having a healthy adult conversation! 🙂

@Celticrose @Dustarr73 we can speculate the reason all we want, we will never know but my favourite little conspiracy theory is that Mr and Mrs Slow go out in their car every rush hour evening to see how many people they can piss off/almost cause accidents with and to just for fun! 😂🤷🏼‍♀️
IDK maybe they're just bonkers and enjoy it? The wife certainly loved her little backwards and forwards wave she was giving me 🙄

This is light hearted before anyone starts!!!

@alwayscauseastir of course I would because I’m not a careless selfish arsehole

And that's what you're calling my grandad, and man you've never met? Wow, aren't you a nice keyboard warrior. Do jog on.

I think that drivers should have to have an eye test every 5-10 years. I shudder to think how many need glasses or contacts but are driving without them.

OP
You make sense.
People should be expected to drive reasonably for the conditions. Erratic speeds, excessive slowness or speed, quick acceleration and braking, random behaviour at roundabouts etc aren't reasonable.

You can leave as much space as required to stop safely, but you're not responsible for other people's driving. I can entirely see a situation where accidents happen caused by the person in front but they escape leaving chaos behind them because they're not paying any attention to the road.

Based on YOU telling me he’s not capable of passing his driving test, yes I am. And you too. I truly hope someone reports him and he loses his license before he kills someone.

I think we should all have to take our test every 10 years even though I bet I would need lessons and possibly fail.

@drinkygin get a grip. He's not going to kill someone by not changing gears as quickly as I would. You do know there's more to passing your test than just the Highway Code? No one will report my grandad, he's driven over 50 years with no points and no accidents. How many people on here can say that. I said he wouldn't pass purely based on the gears, so stop being so nasty to a man you've never met just to give your own ego a boost!

Definitely and millions are taking medication too