OLDER drivers in Staffordshire could soon be offered assessments as an alternative to prosecution for motoring offences.
Staffordshire Police and Staffordshire Safer Roads Partnership (SSRP) will be running the Fitness to Drive pilot in early 2025 as a way of boosting road safety.
Under the scheme, elderly motorists who are pulled over for traffic offences such as careless driving will be offered the chance of taking tests to assess their competence behind the wheel instead of being charged – but if they fail the assessment they will have their driving licence revoked.
Fitness to Drive is available to police forces nationally, and has already been implemented in other areas such as Merseyside and North Wales.
Staffordshire Police recently took part in a national campaign, which saw officers testing the eyesight of drivers of all ages during traffic-related stops.
Staffordshire’s Deputy Commissioner Dave Evans, who co-chairs the SSRP, said the Fitness to Drive scheme would help make the county’s roads safer.
“The scheme, which will be piloted across the county in early 2025, will help to ensure mature drivers have the ability to drive safely, in order to protect themselves and others.
“Last year, 45 people in Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent died on our roads and a further 366 were seriously injured. It’s vital that we are doing everything we can to keep our roads as safe as possible.
“This includes making sure we are fit and well enough to drive every time we get behind the wheel.”
Staffordshire Commissioner Ben Adams spoke in support of the scheme at a recent meeting of Staffordshire’s police, fire and crime panel, saying it would be up to individual drivers to decide whether to accept the offer of the assessments.
He said:
“We talk about young drivers and the risk to them and there’s a proposal for graduated licences not allowing young drivers to do certain things. I’m less supportive of that. I think that’s a more fundamental limitation on freedom.
“But for older people to make a choice, and perhaps consider their own health and fitness to drive, I think is a good thing, and we should see that come in shortly.”
The commissioner told the panel that offering the assessments would be left to the discretion of officers. He added:
“Typically they’ll stop someone for something like drifting across the road or if they’ve moved out into a junction without due care and attention, the type of thing that might suggest to an officer that they’re not in total command of their faculties – then there is a proper assessment for driving along with a medical assessment to support the outcome.”
