Drivers registered in Portugal over 75 years of age are at risk of losing their right to drive. A petition started on Wednesday (1st) proposes that elderly drivers over this age be banned from getting behind the wheel.
Created by Nélson Manuel de Oliveira Ferreira, the measure would be necessary to avoid “unacceptable” situations on Portuguese roadssuch as the use of the wrong way, avoidable accidents and lives put at risk by “people who are no longer able to drive”.
“Beginning the age of 75, cognitive, visual and motor decline is an inevitable reality. Reduced reaction time, loss of perception and poor judgment make driving dangerously unpredictable,” the petition alleges.
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In relation to medical evaluations, the text argues that they are carried out immediately after the examination. “Each unfit driver is a real risk. Each failure can cost lives”, continues the text.
“When the capacity disappears, the right must end”, he concludes.
The petition demands:
- The prohibition of driving motor vehicles from the age of 75;
- The automatic termination of the validity of the driving license at that age;
- The creation of mobility alternatives for the elderly population.
At the time of publication of this article, however, the petition had 294 signatures. Despite the low momentum on the agenda, the text may raise other questions about mobility in the country.
