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LETTER: Driving in B.C. is a privilege, not a right

Mandatory medical examination for seniors isn't discrimination, this writer says
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Editor,

Re: Mandatory medical exam is unfair to senior drivers, Letter to the editor
 
I don’t think so.  A licence to drive in B.C. is a privilege, not a right.  Privileges have a cost, both to the individual enjoying that privilege and to society at large who provide the privilege.  

I have seen terrible drivers who are 20 and wonderful drivers who are 80. The reverse is also true.  

The government could have chosen to use age 85, or 75, or 82, or 79, or any other number, but a number needed to be chosen. It is a fact that our eyesight, hearing , reflexes, and our cognitive abilities all decline with age. While the specific degree and age at which that occurs may be different for everyone, we can all agree that there comes a point in time when one should no longer be behind the wheel of a car placing the public at large in danger.

The requirement to have a medical examination at age 80 is no more an example of age discrimination than is the regulation requiring one to be at least 16 to obtain a driver’s licence in the first place. Yes, $248 may indeed be “a fair chunk of change,” but fees for permits and licenses are not levied according to one’s level of income or whether one is a pensioner or employed in the workforce.  

If we choose to drive a car, the rest of us mere mortals have to pay the appropriate costs for a license and insurance in order to enjoy that privilege. Mr. Currie should do likewise.
 
Ross M. Birney