The European Commission wants to limit the validity of driver’s licenses for people over 70 to five years. After that time, people would be required to undergo a medical examination or take a refresher course.

Okra, the association for the elderly, is highly offended by the proposal and calls it “age discrimination”. And also, the Flemish and Federal Mobility Ministers, Lydia Peeters (Open Vld) and Georges Gilkinet (Ecolo), are against the idea.

“I don’t want to discriminate and restrict an entire age group in their social lives,” Gilkinet said. According to figures he cited from the Vias safety institute, older people are mainly at risk in traffic as cyclists or pedestrians.

National competence

Member states can already limit the validity period of driver’s licenses from the age of 50, but it’s no obligation. It’s a member-state national competence. The European Commission wants to amend that directive and raise the age to over 70.

“Research has shown that older people compensate for the risks by not driving at night, respecting the speed limits, and the safety distance,” Gilkinet says. “If everyone would drive like our seniors, our road safety figures would be much better.” Still, according to Gilkinet, it is better if the family doctor alerts senior drivers when there is a problem.

According to Minister Peeters, it is the driver’s responsibility to assess whether it is still possible to drive a car safely.