Some people maintain strong driving skills as they age. But over time, most of us lose physical abilities that are key to safe driving. Indeed, only teens have more accidents per mile than do adults over age 65.

Advanced years alone are not a reason to stop driving, however. Health, fitness, and thinking power, not age, determine a person’s ability.

Following are signs of possible problems:

- Trouble with vision or hearing. Watch for problems seeing lane lines or pedestrians, overlooking stop signs, or judging the speed of oncoming traffic. Other signs include discomfort with glare or driving at night.

- Inability to twist or turn easily. Arthritis and stiff muscles can make it painful to turn and look when needed. This can lead to trouble when backing up, changing lanes, or merging with traffic.

- Medication use. Many medicines can slow thinking and response time. Drugs for depression and anxiety can do this, as can sleeping pills and medicines for heart conditions, colds, and allergies.

- Dementia. At “early” stages, many individuals can still drive safely. Talk to your loved one’s doctor about a driving skills evaluation.

- Two or more recent tickets. Consider tickets a yellow, warning light. Common infractions include poor parking, running a stop sign, or going the wrong way.

- Two or more recent accidents. Parking lot and sideswipe accidents indicate driver error. Poor depth perception also causes seniors to have a very high rate of left turn accidents.

Take regular ride-along outings. Notice your loved one’s skill level and confidence level. Ask for input from friends and neighbors.

It is important to approach this subject with sensitivity. In the meantime, you may want to explore self-assessments your loved one can take privately, at home. These two were created by the American Automobile Association’s Foundation for Traffic Safety.

AAA Roadwise Review (30-minute multimedia screening tool measuring specific mental and physical capabilities)

AAA Drivers 55 Plus: Self-Rating Form (15 multiple choice, text-based questions)

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