DIn a context where administrative and normative simplification has become something of a political mantra, new rules would still help ensure public health. This is the case with a proposal from the European Parliament’s Transport Committee that aims to question the principle of a lifetime driving license. The measure is being discussed within the framework of a European directive aimed at modernizing and harmonizing the rules for obtaining this administrative document. A vote by MPs was expected on Wednesday, February 28th.
The idea is to require a medical examination every fifteen years, starting from the time you get your driver’s license. The aim of this fitness test would be to regularly monitor vision, hearing and reflexes to determine whether the driver can continue to drive safely. The measure would be unprecedented in France, Germany and Poland. However, Spain, the Netherlands, Denmark and Italy already apply systems that make the renewal of a driving license dependent on a health assessment.
This proposal from environmentalist Karima Delli is part of a series of measures aimed at reducing the number of road deaths by 50% by 2030. In 2022, about 20,000 people have lost their lives in a traffic accident in the European Union. Even if the end-of-life license should only make a modest contribution to the set goal, the initiative responds to a double need.
First, if it is possible to save lives through a simple precaution, it is difficult to justify continuing to allow people to drive who objectively pose a danger to themselves, but also to others, due to their age or state of health. Accidents caused by unfit people cause justifiable anger and incomprehension among the victims and their families. In order to avoid foreseeable circumstances, the maximum must be implemented.
Indisputable medical evaluation grid
The lack of regulations regarding driving licenses often puts families in situations that are difficult to resolve. Convincing a loved one that it no longer makes sense to get behind the wheel is not easy when it means limiting their autonomy and mobility. The application of a universal rule based on an indisputable medical evaluation grid would make it possible to avoid many conflicts that families sometimes find themselves helpless to face.
The lifetime license scheme was introduced at a time when older drivers were a tiny minority. Even if healthy life expectancy continues to increase, the aging of the European population means that legislation must be adapted to this demographic change. Certainly the accident rate among older people is relatively lower than among younger people, but it is bound to increase as more and more older people are on the roads.
The terms of the end-of-life license deserve discussion. In particular, it is necessary to adapt the frequency of tests to age and to find solutions that facilitate the mobility of people whose driving licenses would be revoked. On the other hand, the principle should be the subject of a broad consensus, as is already the case in some European countries. Almost two out of three French people are already in favor of it.
