General Chat

well you brought mobility scooters into the mix so I brought drink driving in

the reason I ask is because you denigrate elderly drivers and mobility scooter users so presumably you consider yourself to be a first class driver, but I'm still waiting for your take on drink drivers

I've already admitted that I had a speeding ticket and attended a speed awareness course, so do tell, from your high moral ground, do you have any driving misdemeanours?

Who would pay for regular fitness to drive test for the whole UK? It is wonky idea utterly impracticable.

GPs for a starting point do not have the time to test several thousand people per practise even on a 5 year basis. Thus a testing contract wouild have to be contracted out at a cost of, say, £ 30-50 per test to some firm such as Group4 or ATOS.

And where would that lead to? Thousands of people with suspended licences while they appealed. Something a bit like this already happens in Oz for those with diabetes.

In any case physical infirmity of the driver is not a very common reason for accidents. Most common reasons are obvious - under the influence (inc drugs), failing to look ( inc use of mobile phone ), going too fast. Testing drivers health would not help in the least.

Total black hole from a political point of view so it won't happen.

This morning I was on a bus hanging on as I was about to get off. A young lady turn-ed right immediately in front of the bus which did a very creditable emergency stop and missed the young lady by the thickness of the paint. She of course was oblivious of the whole thing, phone clamped to her ear. No doubt the bus camera will be useful.

Three aged passengers had minor injuries. When should they give up going by bus ?

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Good point Rollo!!

When should we stop going on cruises and airplanes.

Should us oldies sit and vegetate in our chairs and watch TV??

Fit to drive, to my mind, would mean a driving test rather than a medical test. I think there are many drivers who need to be reminded of the Highway Code.

It would mean more expense but it would also mean more employment.

I knew of one person who was frightened to take her test in the town. She sat her test when she and her husband lived on an island for a while. The test consisted of her driving down the long road of the island while the local policeman stood at one end and watched. No roundabouts, no traffic lights, no anything. She passed and was entitled to drive anywhere in the country.

That's what I call an unfit driver.

If the driving test was any indication of fitness to drive then the terrible accident rates for new drivers ( > 50% claim in first year) would not happen nor would tv have shows such as "Barely Legal (Drivers)".

As with most ideas of this kind repeat driving tests would (a) cost a vast sum of money and (b) do nothing to enhance safety as people would just learn to pass the repeat test. The actual cost per person of getting them to act like performing seals would prob. amount to several hundred pounds. Another certain vote loser which won't happen.

next ?

Many countries eg France have an eye test for drivers over 70 repeated every five years. It is quick cheap and effective.

The driver of the bus which crashed into Sainsburys in Coventry is 77.

I thought that, odd, but the employers insist that he was quite capable, in view of his medicals........but we don't as yet know why the bus collided with another bus prior to running into the supermarket

Not sure it did collide with a bus, Bob. Other cars, yes, but no mention of a bus in the local paper.

The driver has not been arrested and it may turn out that he wasn't at fault so I'm not sure that speculation about his age being a contributory factor is justified.

AnnCardiff - I am certainly not setting out to criticize ALL elderly drivers so please do not try to imply the opposite and apologies if you erroneously think that to be the case.

However, you do seem a little confused about the topic - as you have an obsession with finding out personal information about other people and their minor wrongdoings, maybe you would like to start a thread on such a theme.

quite happy on here thanks

And we are very happy to have you here - just thought that if you wanted to discuss an entirely different topic you might want to start a thread about it, that's all :)

Guine

taken from the bulletin 5 oct,

bystanders comments.............

"Almas Fatima from Pleck, Walsall, said her two daughters, aged 12 and 14, were not able to sleep after they saw the crash and narrowly missed being hit.

"I just remember a bus coming towards us and we survived. That's the only thing we remember," she said.

"We were walking on the pavement and as soon as the bus started moving it hit the other bus as well as we realised it was not stopping, it was coming at full-speed towards us, and I told my daughters, 'just run'."

The bus hit a number of cars and a lamppost before crashing into the open supermarket at about 18:00 BST on Saturday, officers said."

I MAY have read that wrong???

is it possible that the bus was deflected by a second bus, causing the accident into the supermarket???

Bob, I've read that the bus clipped another when leaving a bus stop, it was travelling at 60 miles an hour, it was travelling at 15 miles an hour, it's brake lights were on, it was picking up speed. In other words, nobody knows what happened however, in my opinion, the driver should have retired.

Could be, Bob. The local papers haven't had anything about another bus.

The London press have been poking around asking questions in the shops and trying to track down witnesses. The Mail was particularly intrusive and someone I know sent the reporter away with two words.

Many people have been saying how dangerous that area is for some time. There's a zebra crossing in a crazy place. I hate crossing the road there.

yes I must agree, a bit Ambiguous...........Witnesses Eh?

we all " see " things in a way that seems to fit the facts...........

seem to recall a program years ago,looking into just that, several different witnesses accounts of the same incident........all different.....

I worry that the "probing" questions asked by reporters after a good story will make witnesses exaggerate what they saw before the police have chance to talk to them.

That's if the police ever get around to it.

I watched a car this morning driven by an elderly person. They turned into a side road completely on the wrong side - with traffic coming the other way.

I have just been to our local shopping centre and was almost at a roundabout when a parked car indicated to pull out. I slowed and let him but the young driver behind me had obviously not looked beyond the vehicle in front (me) and overtook me, almost colliding with the car now in front of me!

It takes all sorts...

At least there wasn't an accident but it does take all sorts.