A proposal is being floated to require older drivers to display a " S " plate on their cars. Presumably, the " S " is supposed to designate " Senior driver ".
The precise terms have not been disclosed, but attention is directed at drivers from age seventy-five onwards. It has been suggested that drivers from seventy-five be required to have an annual medical examination before license renewal - and that those at either eighty - or eighty five - be restricted to a ten kilometre radius from their place of residence.
This latest suggestion seems to require those at either eighty or eighty-five to display an " S " plate.
It is interesting to speculate on just what such a plan would achieve. New drivers already progress through red to green " P " plates - which impose restrictions on speed and passengers allowed - but their only real purpose seems to be to help the police identify driver age and experience within the traffic stream.
This could be the thin edge of the wedge to impose speed restrictions on older drivers - and if so it would have the reverse effect. A car travelling well below the speed limit on high speed roads such as the Hume highway or the Federal highway is more likely to cause an accident than a car going with the flow.
It seems to be a case of the government trying to impose a " one size fits all " solution. There are many drivers on our roads - old and not so old - who simply shouldn't be there because they lack the mental and physical skills to drive.
A medical examination before license renewal for those over seventy-five is a good, practical idea - but it should be reinforced by an advertising campaign advising the family of impaired drivers of any age to notify police to require that person to be medically examined.
Simply applying an age restriction - or denigrating older drivers by requiring an " S " plate to be displayed is a form of discrimination that will not achieve a benefit !
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