Driving at 85 years old - 2.

I'm not saying that at all. I'm just saying that the idea of retesting with an immediate loss of driving licences for failure is a fundamentally bad idea and if implemented tomorrow, would cause unnecassary chaos and not actually improve driving standards at all.

How would the removal of incompetent and dangerous drivers not improve driving standards?
 
I expect most drivers would claim they are good at it, how do we know your not one of those idiots ( your words) who can't even drive to a proper standard but don't actually realise it yourself ??

I might well be, but i passed it once which means i can pass it again if i put a little effort in. If i fail then thats my own fault, i have nobody to blame for it but myself.

Its not like the information on what will be required isnt already out there.

If you want to argue against it then the better argument would be that its easy to swot up and drive properly for the test before immediately reverting back to your old ways.
 
How would the removal of incompetent and dangerous drivers not improve driving standards?

People who currently pass their test first time aren't better drivers than those who fail and then pass second or third time, yet they're still allowed to drive. As above, it's quite easy to drive appropriately for the test just to pass. Retesting has no guarantee of actually removing incompetent and dangerous drivers.

Plus, are they incompetent and dangerous if they're currently driving without incident? You might think they are, but statistically they're not. If they're so dangerous that they literally can't drive without causing an accident, they'll already have been caught and received points, fines, been disqualified etc.
 
People who currently pass their test first time aren't better drivers than those who fail and then pass second or third time, yet they're still allowed to drive. As above, it's quite easy to drive appropriately for the test just to pass. Retesting has no guarantee of actually removing incompetent and dangerous drivers.

Plus, are they incompetent and dangerous if they're currently driving without incident? You might think they are, but statistically they're not.

Just because they've not been in a crash doesn't mean they've not caused one.


Or won't go on to cause one. I prefer to prevent accidents rather than clean up after them.
 
My grandad drove until 85. He was t-boned at a junction which wasn't his fault but decided to hang up his boots after then. I was young but never felt unsafe with him driving but then again he had driven everything and anything. Learnt to drive in a Austin 7 and even had a E28 BMW M535i which he bought brand new when working in Poland during the 80's and drove it all the way back to blighty.

My point is you could have someone who has driven a lot of cars and been well travelled. In their 80's driving just as well as someone in their mid thirties who has never driven on the motorway before.

I am sure Jackie Stewart would show all of us in here a clean pair of heels on track.
 
My grandad drove until 85. He was t-boned at a junction which wasn't his fault but decided to hang up his boots after then. I was young but never felt unsafe with him driving but then again he had driven everything and anything. Learnt to drive in a Austin 7 and even had a E28 BMW M535i which he bought brand new when working in Poland during the 80's and drove it all the way back to blighty.

My point is you could have someone who has driven a lot of cars and been well travelled. In their 80's driving just as well as someone in their mid thirties who has never driven on the motorway before.

I am sure Jackie Stewart would show all of us in here a clean pair of heels on track.

Agree with the above point. But get this goes back to the thread topic...

I am saying that if all drivers regardless of age were retested people that pass are allowed to keep their license and those that don't have to resit a refresher/short retest.

The problem in reality is, is that no one proposed this retest early enough. Driving much like drinking and smoking has been around too long its considered a human right once you've passed your initial driving test.

However, Health and Safety kicked in, in the workplace at warehouses or large chains with regular retests on Forklifts, Lorries and other such machinery - all just as dangerous as a car depending on the situation. Any that fail their refresher's have to go and sit a course/retest so why should it be any different for Joe public with their car/van/bike/lorry be it used for personal or business use?

Also, Jackie Stewart being an ex F1 driver despite his age is no fair comparison to any 'normal' person so that point is irrelevant/moot.

Shawrey
 
Well, now that the majority of posts are against 'regular testing' lets see who else we you can all upset
I know, cyclists!
(1) I think they should should have to take a proficiency test so they know that red lights actually mean STOP
(2) Should have to take out 3rd party insurance so that when they scratch your door squeezing past in traffic you can chase them down the road and stop them for their insurance details.
(3) Should be totally banned from cycling in pedestrianised areas, and if caught given compulsory English reading lessons so they know what the word pedestrians actually means
(4) Ban cycling on pavements, If cyclists complain that the road is unsafe then they are clearly not capable, young children however would be exempt for obvious reasons.
(5) Make fitting a bell compulsory so that when they come speeding up behind you in the park ( or more likely the local shopping precinct) they can let you know they are coming
 
Well, now that the majority of posts are against 'regular testing' lets see who else we you can all upset
I know, cyclists!
(1) I think they should should have to take a proficiency test so they know that red lights actually mean STOP
(2) Should have to take out 3rd party insurance so that when they scratch your door squeezing past in traffic you can chase them down the road and stop them for their insurance details.
(3) Should be totally banned from cycling in pedestrianised areas, and if caught given compulsory English reading lessons so they know what the word pedestrians actually means
(4) Ban cycling on pavements, If cyclists complain that the road is unsafe then they are clearly not capable, young children however would be exempt for obvious reasons.
(5) Make fitting a bell compulsory so that when they come speeding up behind you in the park ( or more likely the local shopping precinct) they can let you know they are coming

The amount of dangerous red light jumping I see quite regularly from cyclists (just in my local area) is scary. They seem to like playing frogger on busy crossroads :/

Problem is the moment they learn it's a bad idea is probably when they get killed or crippled for life.
 
You misread peoples posts, everyone would just love to be retested regularly,:rolleyes: anyway that's irrelevant, we just need a good excuse to bash cyclists

As a cyclist, if other cyclists want to ride like morons and kill themselves then good luck to them (usually adults on ***** mountian bikes) but there are plenty of drivers that drive like morons and genuinely put cyclists in danger just because they cant be bothered to wait a few seconds or arent even looking because most drivers out there seemingly dont read the road at all and only look as far as their own bonnet.

As an aside, plenty of cyclists have liability insurance, I do for instance as its part of British Cycling membership which for nigh on £30 a year is nothing
 
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Yea and it's well worth having as if you do get hit and it's deemed to be your fault, you could end up with a bill for the damage your face caused to the car. On top of being in hospital.
 
Yea and it's well worth having as if you do get hit and it's deemed to be your fault, you could end up with a bill for the damage your face caused to the car. On top of being in hospital.

Absolutely, but its more than likely a driver thats the cause more often than not in my experience. As an example, last Friday I went out for a ride at 9.30am thinking the rush hour has gone so the traffic should have died down dramatically, which it had. Unfortunately its also the time as I found out when the old folk come out of their home for a drive to where ever.

I had an old man that pulled out in front of me from a side road whilst I was riding along the main road, I was wearing a red jersey and a red and white helmet with both my lights flashing but he still pulled out in front of me, I yelled at him to look out and he stopped dead across my lane so I had to slam on my anchors.

About two miles down the same road someone opened their door on me without looking first, which I had to swerve round sharply.

About 5 miles later an old lady waiting to pull out of a side road, I made eye contact as I find that usually helps to acknowledge they have seen me and she still proceedes to pull out on me anyway, so I had to slam on the anchors. By then I was so ****** off I swore at her asking why she couldn't wait 5 seconds till I ******* passed but she just cowered behind her steering wheel.

People look but dont see and this is despite wearing bright colours and have flashing lights in broad daylight. I get that some cyclists behaviour is really annoying but at least they dont normally put your life at risk.
 
Absolutely, but its more than likely a driver thats the cause more often than not in my experience. As an example, last Friday I went out for a ride at 9.30am thinking the rush hour has gone so the traffic should have died down dramatically, which it had. Unfortunately its also the time as I found out when the old folk come out of their home for a drive to where ever.

I had an old man

About 5 miles later an old lady
old people eh, aren't they terrible, clogging up the hospital A&E leaving less room for chavs with a broken finger nail etc etc, I bet you wish they could all be removed to make way for you and your chums, perhaps have compulsory euthanasia at aged 70?

I wonder if you were that selfish B****** that I was stuck behind for nearly 3 miles on a single track country road near Stratford on Avon 2 weeks ago?, he had all the pro gear on, kept looking over his shoulder knowing full well I was there as he sped along, passed dozens of farm gates but refused point blank to let me pass. That's just one typical example of moronic selfish cyclists I seem to see every day lately.
 
I wonder if you were that selfish B****** that I was stuck behind for nearly 3 miles on a single track country road near Stratford on Avon 2 weeks ago?, he had all the pro gear on, kept looking over his shoulder knowing full well I was there as he sped along, passed dozens of farm gates but refused point blank to let me pass. That's just one typical example of moronic selfish cyclists I seem to see every day lately.

Obviously not as its pretty clear where Im from from the left hand side of the screen. As I said, I completely get that there are some cyclists that are thoughtless and really annoying, I experience them myself either as a driver or as a pedestrian. There is a vast difference between cyclists being annoying and drivers risking your life with acts of stupidity.
 
Obviously not as its pretty clear where Im from from the left hand side of the screen.
There is a vast difference between cyclists being annoying and drivers risking your life with acts of stupidity.

You could have been on a cycling holiday :p the cyclist I mentioned was actually encouraging stupidity, there were a couple of risky chances to get past but without giving him a safe clearance so I resisted whereas others may have not
 
You misread peoples posts, everyone would just love to be retested regularly,:rolleyes:

tbh i wouldn't mind it, i mean why test if the car's safe to be on the roads and not check the driver? neither are particularly dangerous on their own.

as i mentioned before- anyone who can't hold together safe driving technique for a 30 minute re-test every few years is not fit to be on the roads and should have their licence revoked, be it from the slowing down of old age, the boisterousness of youth or just being utterly incompetent.

anyway that's irrelevant, we just need a good excuse to bash cyclists

always the way, it's pretty simple- if it transports people on the road it must be controlled by a competent person, pay the appropriate emissions tax, must be mechanically sound (where applicable), and pay minimum 3rd party insurance. whether it travels on wheels, legs, tracks, hovers just above the ground or bounces.

so yes that does mean riding an emu needs insurance and space hoppers should have an mot.
 
People who have never driven structure their lives around not being able to drive. They don't apply for jobs that aren't served by public transport, jobs that require motorway travel, etc. People who drive structure their entire lives around being able to drive. It's a not question of what the point of the test is, it's a question of whether the benefits of retesting would outweigh the effects of potentially millions of people losing their licences. There's 45.5 million drivers in the UK - how many do you think would fail a retest?

Retesting doesn't really solve a problem (this idea that our driving standards are a problem seems to have popped up out of nowhere) but has the potential to create huge social and economic problems across the country. It's a stupid idea.

It's not, the counter measure would be to improve the public transport, Japan is a perfect example that cars are not needed when you've a reliable and affordable public transport. I never really used public transport, always had something with an engine to commute on since I was younger, but I would happily switch.
 
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