GOVERNMENTS HAVE AN AMAZING ability to find money for all sorts of programs that take their fancy, especially when they see votes in them. But when there’s a real initiative that might actually save lives on the roads, they zip their pockets and look the other way.
One example is a driver education program designed to keep older South Australian drivers safe and mobile.
Despite SA recording its highest road toll since 2010, with a third of victims being over the age of 60, the state government has withdrawn funding for the Moving Right Along program run by the South Australia Council on the Ageing.
This valuable initiative has been exposed to more than 2500 drivers around the state providing important information about when it is no longer safe for older motorists to continue driving and about surrendering their licence, a matter of major concern to most older motorists.
What beggars belief is that the level of government funding was a paltry $100,000.
It is typical of prevailing attitudes towards older drivers among government bodies – minimal interest, minimal support and a concentration on how to get them off the roads, rather than how to make it possible for them to continue driving for longer.
The Moving Right Along program (as seniordriveraus detailed in our story here ) concentrated on older drivers ability to self-assess their fitness to continue driving, a matter of considerable importance now that drivers over 70 are no longer required to undergo an annual medical assessment in South Australia.
We all know (or should know) that our ability to drive changes as we age. Self-assessment can only work if people are honest in their evaluation and have the knowledge to accurately assess their abilities.
CEO of COTA, Jane Mussared, pointed out that older drivers in regional areas are less likely to surrender their driver’s licence due to poor or non-existent public transport options. The Moving Right Along program explains the options available to older drivers who decide to stop driving.
“People are really scared about losing a driving licence,” she explained. “They’re really scared abut what alternatives they have and about being stuck at home.”
The value of the COTA program lies in showing older drivers their options. “The evidence says if they’re well-informed, they self-assess very well; they stop driving at night, they stop driving long distances, they give up their licence altogether.” But it’s very important that they have the information to help them do that and have information about their alternatives.
The state government response was to be expected. The transport minister said it was focused on investing money on improving regional roads, and that the Moving Right Along program was only one of a number of other resources and programs available to older drivers, such as those run by state motoring associations.
seniordriveraus disagrees.
For a tiny sum (in terms of government expenditure), the Moving Right Along program fulfils an important and under-appreciated role in helping older drivers transition to life without a driver’s licence. Re-allocating funding from the largely spurious and useless media advertising campaign for road safety, or some of the huge amounts spent on sport would be a step in the right direction.
We urge you to contact the South Australian state minister for transport, Stephan Knoll (ministerknoll@sa.gov.au) and make your disapproval known (as seniordriveraus has already done on your behalf). In other states, we recommend contacting your local transport minister and demand more action for older drivers.
NSW: Andrew Constance, bega@parliament.nsw.gov.au
VIC: Jacinta Allen, Jacinta.allan@parliament.vic.gov.au
QLD: Mark Bailey, transportandmainroads@ministerial.qld.gov.au
TAS: Michael Ferguson, michael.ferguson@dpac.tas.gov.au
ACT: Chris Steel, https://www.contactmyminister.act.gov.au/
NT: Eva Dina Lawler, https://nt.gov.au/about-government/the-cabinet
WA: Rita Saffioti, Minister.Saffioti@dpc.wa.gov.au
If you’d like to learn more about issues affecting older drivers, retirement, health, superannuation, travel and much, much more, subscribe to YourLifeChoices (it’s free) at https://www.yourlifechoices.com.au/ and listen to the podcast (including interviews with seniordriveraus) hosted by Kaye Fallick and John Deeks at https://www.yourlifechoices.com.au/podcasts/mind-your-own-retirement