A time for letting go
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Updated: June 30, 2009 3:27 PM
It can be hard to let go – but those who keep driving long after they can do so safely are endangering others by clinging to the privilege of operating a motor vehicle.
Police checkstops remove drivers from the road when they have had too much to drink.
The stressed-out businessman who swilled down a string of vodka tonics and then decided to get behind the wheel could accidentally destroy lives, vehicles and property.
His vision is blurry.
His reflexes are dulled.
On top of the immediate physical effects, what our mythical driver also lacks, besides common sense, is confidence.
A part of him knows he should not be driving. He does so anyway, but tension, guilt and fear make him nervous and unpredictable. He represents a danger to the rest of society.
While alcohol inhibits vision and reflexes in the human body, another agent that creates these conditions is aging.
As human beings, the yearning for freedom to travel where we will is deep-rooted.
Do we have a deeper responsibility to the safety of others?
Traffic detachment officers note that a car moving too slowly poses just as much a hazard as a car going too fast.
If a driver cannot pilot their car unless travelling at half the speed limit, slowly weaving from side to side, the risks outweigh the rewards.
Nobody wants to give up their driver’s license, but there are those on our roads who pose just as much of a risk to property and pedestrian’s lives as any drunk driver.
Old age has made them a hazard against their will.
Accepting that one has moved into a phase of life where driving safely is no longer possible may seem embarrassing or frustrating.
It’s hard to give up the open road.
But it’s not worth anyone’s life.
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