Greensboro, N.C. - There are 6.7 million licensed drivers in North
Carolina. More than one million of those drivers are over the age of 65.
At some point, many of us will have to give up driving. Deciding to
give up your license takes guts, but seniors WFMY News 2 spoke to Monday
said they're glad they made the choice before someone else made it for
them.
Ray Cienek stopped driving just before his 90th birthday.
"Once you make up your mind, it's easy. But, if you fight it, it's not easy," Cienek said.
Sonia Friedman made up her mind at age 75.
"I
knew it had to be done. Rather than them taking the car from me, I
decided I would give it up. It was my decision," Friedman said. Her
choice relieved her son. "He quickly took me to sell the car. The minute
I made the decision, he took me right that day because he was afraid
I'd change my mind," she said.
Both seniors have a message to those who keep their license for too long:
Cienek
said, "I think they should be told, outright, 'you're not fit to drive
your car or to be out on the highway. You can get injured or killed or
you could do that to somebody else. How would you like to have that on
your mind?"
Friedman added, "If you know you really shouldn't be
driving, you're endangering the lives of other people. Really, it's not
the worst thing that could happen. You can survive without a car."
North
Carolina does not have an upper age limit for drivers' licenses. There
are about two-thousand drivers in our state over the age of 96.
If you have a loved one, friend or neighbor who shouldn't be driving, you do have options.
You can submit one of these forms
-- a medical evaluation request -- to the state. The driver then has 30
days to get a doctor to sign off on his or health and give the "all
clear" for driving. Otherwise, the license will get cancelled. You must
sign the evaluation request, but the driver will never know you
submitted the form.
Restricted licenses are also an option. You
can get licenses that forbid you from driving on interstates, or even
within a certain radius of your home. The state can restrict your
license to only daylight driving or even only to church and nearby
stores.
On Wednesday, the Greensboro Central Library will host a
seminar called, "Aging in Greensboro: A Compassionate Approach to Caring
for our Elders." It runs from 1-5 p.m.
WFMY News 2