White Rock resident Ralph Johnson was pleased to hear the provincial government changed its mind about a controversial computer test that can strip seniors of their right to drive.
The 86-year-old father of four, grandfather of six and great-grandfather of five is one of many critics who have complained about the DriveABLE test that uses a computer touchscreen to determine whether someone is mentally sharp enough to keep driving.
Johnson, who passed a medical exam to renew his drivers’ licence two years ago, said he agrees older drivers should be tested to ensure they are physically and mentally up to the demands of driving, but the testing should be done in a doctor’s office and on the road, not with an automated computer program.
“I don’t see the logic,” Johnson said Tuesday. “I’d like someone to prove it to me.”
Some seniors were quite intimidated by the unfamiliar computer technology used in the test, he said.
“They were worried sick about losing their licence.”
Up until this week, a driver who flunked DriveABLE did not have the option of taking a road test.
Now, Attorney General Shirley Bond has announced that drivers who fail the computer test will have the right to be tested at the wheel before they have to surrender their licences. Bond said Monday that all those who failed the on-screen test in the past six months will be offered a free road test, using a test car with dual brakes.
Johnson is pleased by the news.
He said placing a senior at the wheel with a human being observing is far better measure of ability than a computer.
“A good tester can tell in a minute (if a person is safe to drive).”
NDP public safety critic Kathy Corrigan said the road test option is a step in the right direction.
Corrigan said she was surprised to hear the province announce that the DriveABLE program is now being “peer reviewed,” a step she said the government should have taken before the service was contracted for B.C.
A DriveABLE test is ordered when a medical professional, the office of the provincial superintendent of motor vehicles, ICBC, or WorkSafe BC has concerns that a driver may be showing signs of cognitive impairment, such as Alzheimer’s.
The DriveABLE test, which uses a terminal with a touch screen, takes about 60 minutes.
In the first part, the person being tested must hold down a button until a shape appears somewhere on the screen. Then they have to release the button and touch the shape as quickly as possible.
It’s to test reaction time and accuracy of movement.
Another section tests the ability to notice changes at the edge of a person’s field of vision by requiring the test subject to make a decision about a word in the centre of the screen, and to report the location of a target that appears at the same time in a different area of the computer monitor. It is supposed to simulate the response to pedestrians and traffic signs.
Critics of the program have said it is not fair to require elderly people who have little or no experience with computers and may find them intimidating to spend an hour with one to prove they have the necessary degree of “cognitive functioning” to stay on the road.
Until this week, when the free road tests were approved, a driver who failed DriveABLE would only had the option of trying the computer again, at a cost of $350.
Johnson said finding that much money can be difficult, especially for those on fixed incomes.
The Air Force veteran used to own a computer 10 years ago, but didn’t use it a lot. Still, he is confident he could pass the DriveABLE test if one is ever ordered for him.
Johnson estimates he’s driven “million of miles” in his many years on the road, including 20 years maneuvering a 26-foot C-Class motor home on holidays.
His worst accident happened a few months ago when a 57-year-old driver backed into Johnson’s Honda in a mall parking lot at a high rate of speed. The younger driver took full responsibility.
The Honda was a write-off, however, so Johnson now drives a Pontiac Sunfire coupe that used to belong to his youngest son.
– with files from Tom Fletcher