Driving license ban for the elderly in Japan
In Japan, where the population is aging rapidly, a campaign launched to prevent the elderly from driving in order to reduce the number of traffic accidents has sparked debate in the country.
12punto
A law was enacted in Japan to prevent the elderly from driving. According to the new law in the country, everyone over the age of 75 is now required to pass a dementia test to renew their driver's license. Those over 70 are also required to attend sessions explaining the negative effects of aging on reflexes and visual capacity, and to participate in a driving test with the police.
The Japanese government has been running a campaign for the last 10 years encouraging elderly people to surrender their driver's licenses. Businesses offer certain privileges to those who give up their licenses, and restaurants provide free meals. There are even companies that lower the prices of funeral services.
THE POPULATION IS AGING AT A RAPID PACE
In Japan, which has the fastest-aging population in the world, fatal accidents caused by elderly drivers are also increasing rapidly. Following an incident in Tokyo in 2019, where an 87-year-old man struck and killed a woman and her 3-year-old daughter at a crosswalk, the rate of elderly people voluntarily returning their licenses had increased.
However, many elderly Japanese people, especially those living far from young relatives and in areas where public transportation is inadequate, still need their cars.
According to officials, elderly Japanese people are involved in more than half of the serious traffic accidents in the country today. Police officer Yutaka Kanaizumi, who explains that they do not issue new licenses to many people of advanced age, says that many people are very angry at this decision.