GALLUP NEWS SERVICE
PRINCETON, NJ -- An elderly California man's recent car accident in a crowded marketplace resulted in 10 deaths, sparking debate on the issue of older drivers. A new Gallup Poll shows overwhelming support for regular testing of elderly drivers, but it also shows that by almost a two-to-one margin, Americans oppose setting absolute age limits on driving. The public views older drivers as safer than teenagers.
Roughly 9 in 10 Americans favor laws that would require older people to renew their drivers' licenses and submit to in-person eyesight and road driving tests every few years, according to the July 18-20 poll. Many states have stricter requirements on drivers' licenses for older drivers, such as more frequent license renewals and in-person vision tests. Illinois and New Hampshire require road tests for drivers 75 and older. A provision of a bill in the California legislature with the same requirement was defeated in 2000.
Gallup measured public support for such testing requirements with two versions of the question: one concerning people older than 65 and one concerning people older than 75. The age distinction made little difference -- 89% favor periodic testing of drivers older than 65 and 91% favor periodic testing of drivers over age 75. Studies show that older drivers are as safe as those in other age groups -- and are safer than teenage drivers -- until age 75, when their accident rates increase.
While the results are virtually the same whether respondents are told that the law would apply to drivers older than 65 or to drivers older than 75, the different wording does affect the way older Americans evaluate the proposal. Specifically, when the policy is described as applying to drivers older than 65, there is a significant difference in responses by age -- 96% of Americans below the age of 50 favor testing of drivers older than 65, while only 79% of Americans aged 50 and older agree. However, when the law is said to apply to drivers older than 75, there is essentially no difference according to age -- 93% of Americans below age 50 support regular testing of drivers aged 75 and older, as do 89% of Americans aged 50 and older. Clearly, Americans who are retired or approaching retirement age are more resistant to such policies that would affect people aged 65 and older, than they are to policies aimed at those 75 and older.
| Opinion About Requiring Older Americans
to Take Eyesight and Driving Tests Every Few Years % Favoring |
 |
| July 18-20, 2003 |
Despite widespread support for regular testing of older drivers, Americans reject the notion of imposing age limits on drivers. Sixty-four percent say there should not be an age at which a person should no longer be permitted to drive. Seven percent say the age limit should be 70 years or less, 17% say it should be between 71 and 80 years old, and 8% say it should be 81 years or older. The question was also asked in a March 1991 Gallup Poll, with similar results.
Is there an age at which you think a person should no longer be permitted to drive? [IF YES: What age?]
|
2003 Jul 18-20 |
1991 Mar 28-30 |
|
|
% |
% |
|
|
Under 70 years of age |
7 |
9 |
|
71-75 years old |
6 |
11 |
|
76-80 years old |
11 |
6 |
|
81-85 years old |
6 |
3 |
|
86-90 years old |
2 |
1 |
|
91-95 years old |
* |
1 |
|
96 years or older |
* |
* |
|
No age/None |
64 |
67 |
|
No opinion |
4 |
3 |
|
* Less than 0.5% |
||
At least 6 in 10 Americans in all age groups believe there should be no age limits on driving. Among those who do favor an age cutoff, older Americans generally favor a higher age limit than younger Americans do. Only 5% of Americans aged 65 and older think people aged 75 or younger should not be allowed to drive, compared with 18% of Americans aged 18-29.
Age at Which a Person Should No Longer Be Permitted to Drive, by Age Category
|
18-29 |
30-49 |
50-64 |
65+ |
|
|
No age limit |
61% |
65% |
65% |
61% |
|
75 or under |
18% |
16% |
9% |
5% |
|
Over 75 |
15% |
18% |
22% |
27% |
Public Sees Teens as Greater Road Hazard
Americans are inclined to think teenagers are more dangerous drivers than the elderly are. A random half of the survey sample was asked whether teenagers or people over the age of 65 are the more dangerous drivers. Seventy-one percent said teenagers, and 25% said people over 65. When the other random half of the sample was asked about people over 75, teenagers still were rated as the more dangerous drivers, by a nearly two-to-one margin, 63% to 33%.
In fact, the data suggest Americans are becoming increasingly likely to see teens as the greater road risk. An April 1996 Gallup Poll found just 55% saying teenagers were the more dangerous drivers (compared with 63% today). In 1996, 40% said drivers 75 and older were more dangerous.
| Who Are the More Dangerous Drivers: Teenagers or People Over Age 75? |
 |
Younger Americans -- those aged 18-29 -- are only slightly more likely to say teenage drivers (49%) are more dangerous than older drivers (44%). At least two-thirds of Americans in all other age groups view teens as the more dangerous drivers.
Survey Methods
These results are based on telephone interviews with a randomly selected national sample of 1,003 adults, 18 years and older, conducted July 18-20, 2003. For results based on this sample, one can say with 95 percent confidence that the maximum error attributable to sampling and other random effects is ±3 percentage points. In addition to sampling error, question wording and practical difficulties in conducting surveys can introduce error or bias into the findings of public opinion polls.
Turning now to another subject,
32. Do you drive a car or other vehicle?
|
Yes |
No |
No opinion |
|
|
2003 Jul 18-20 |
91 |
9 |
* |
|
1997 Aug 22-25 |
90 |
10 |
* |
|
1991 Mar 28-30 |
89 |
11 |
* |
|
* Less than 0.5% |
|||
Q.33-34 SPLIT SAMPLED
33. Just your opinion, who are the more dangerous drivers -- [ROTATED: teenagers, (or) people over 65 years of age]?
BASED ON -- 498 -- NATIONAL ADULTS IN FORM A
|
Teenagers |
People over age 65 |
No opinion |
|
|
2003 Jul 18-20 |
71% |
25 |
4 |
34. Just your opinion, who are the more dangerous drivers -- [ROTATED: teenagers, (or) people over 75 years of age]?
BASED ON -- 505 -- NATIONAL ADULTS IN FORM B
|
Teenagers |
People over age 75 |
No opinion |
|
|
2003 Jul 18-20 |
63% |
33 |
4 |
|
1996 Apr 25-28 |
55% |
40 |
5 |
Q.35-36 SPLIT SAMPLED
35. Would you favor or oppose a law in your state that required those older than 65 to renew their drivers' license and take an in-person eyesight and driving test every few years?
BASED ON -- 498 -- NATIONAL ADULTS IN FORM A
|
Favor |
Oppose |
No opinion |
|
|
2003 Jul 18-20 |
89% |
11 |
* |
|
* Less than 0.5% |
|||
36. Would you favor or oppose a law in your state that required those older than 75 to renew their drivers' license and take an in-person eyesight and driving test every few years?
BASED ON -- 505 -- NATIONAL ADULTS IN FORM B
|
Favor |
Oppose |
No opinion |
|
|
2003 Jul 18-20 |
91% |
8 |
1 |
37. Is there an age at which you think a person should no longer be permitted to drive? [What age?]
|
2003 Jul 18-20 |
1991 Mar 28-30 |
|
|
% |
% |
|
|
Under 70 years of age |
7 |
9 |
|
71-75 years old |
6 |
11 |
|
76-80 years old |
11 |
6 |
|
81-85 years old |
6 |
3 |
|
86-90 years old |
2 |
1 |
|
91-95 years old |
* |
1 |
|
96 years or older |
* |
* |
|
No age/None |
64 |
67 |
|
No opinion |
4 |
3 |
|
* Less than 0.5% |
||