Are Baby Boomers Better Drivers?
Baby Boomers, so far, buck the trend regarding increased driving fatalities with aging. As Baby Boomers age, the expectation is that, before long, driving skills will falter and as a result we would see this demographic involved in more accidents. This is a real fear, as we have watched with concern as our own parents aged. We have been faced with the difficult decision of prying the car keys out of our parents’ hands, as they become a danger to themselves and others. Unfortunately, the loss of independence hit our parents hard.
But there may be good news for Boomers, and our independence. In a recent article, Washington Post reporter Katherine Shaver noted that, as the first wave of Boomers are approaching their 70s, fatalities in this age group have actually dropped, despite the fact that more drivers within this age group are on the road. Why? They are fitter and healthier than their predecessors. They are also benefitting from improved auto safety standards. Yet in spite of this, driving does become more difficult with advancing age. Many Boomers will be hitting their 80s and 90s at the same time. This “demographic bubble’s” true impact won’t be felt on the road for at least another eight years. Still the news is good so far.
There are a lot of us who are going to outlive our ability to drive,” said Ann Dellinger, transportation safety chief at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Injury Center in Atlanta. “When that happens, what happens to our transportation options? I think we need some creative minds to look at those options.”
Won’t it be interesting to see what these creative minds come up with? Self-driving cars seem to be just around the corner. Can communities expand transportation options, such as using school buses during down times? We will all be watching this issue carefully, since Boomers have always placed an especially high value on self-sufficiency, and on finding solutions.
By Cherie R. Blazer
Cherie is a late bloomer Boomer, born at the tail end of the Boomer generation. She was playing with Barbies while her older sisters marched on Washington and fought for equal rights, but watched and learned. Now she is an empty nester with a whole new future to explore and share at www.BoomerConnections.com! As “Philosopher in Chief” Cherie merely wants to change the world with this blog: to encourage those of us in the midst of our “second act” to look at life with new eyes, open to a life filled with new beginnings rather than endings, and to apply all we have learned to a way of living that is more meaningful and profound. There is SO much to live for, up until the very end.