Government clears road for elderly drivers

From December next year, drivers aged over 80 will no longer have to take a mandatory on-road test.

Scrapping the test for older drivers was promised by the Labour Party during the last election campaign.

Drivers will still have to get a medical certificate showing they are fit to drive when they reach 75, then 80, then every two years after that.

Doctors will also be able to refer people aged 75 years and over for a driving test if they believe it is necessary.

Transport Safety Minister Harry Duynhoven said the mandatory driving test could not be stopped any sooner than next December because of the processes that had to be followed to introduce the new rules, including public consultation.

Information packs about the new rules would be given to older drivers, their families and doctors, he said.

The Prime Minister, Helen Clark, said yesterday that New Zealand was one of the few countries that required drivers aged 80 and over to take a mandatory driving test.

Britain, Western Europe and most states in Australia and the United States had no such test.

"Overall their crash statistics for older drivers are no better or worse than ours," she said.

"New Zealand's older drivers are generally a safe group. Most older people drive conservatively and self-regulate their driving."

However, Insurance Council chief executive Chris Ryan said earlier that insurance company statistics showed the elderly were the highest risk group for driver accidents after under-25-year-olds.

The council thought the medical tests were not enough.

Helen Clark also said the Government was providing an extra $500,000 to expand the Safe with Age classroom road safety courses for older drivers, with the aim of reaching about 8000 drivers a year over the next three years.

From July 1, 2007 the Government would provide a 50 per cent subsidy to graduates of a Safe with Age course who wanted to take a private on-road lesson to improve their driving skills.

- NZPA