Children are put into an impossible situation when they have to sit an elderly parent down to have a difficult discussion about their future behind the wheel of a car. The freedom of the open road has become a potentially dangerous and deadly hazard.
The trend of people living longer lives means that more drivers in their seventies and eighties are navigating neighborhood streets, highways, and major intersections. However, safety concerns continue due to the greater risk of crashes combined with the greater chance of life-threatening and life-ending injuries than younger people.
Accounting for age
Simply put, age-related declines affect certain cognitive abilities. Ever-advancing technology can play a role in keeping senior drivers and others sharing the road safely. Recent innovations in helping drivers navigate intersections could reduce severe and fatal accidents involving older drivers, specifically those involving left turns.
Left turn assist is just one of the many upcoming intersection-assistance features. It provides a camera and sensors to detect oncoming traffic upon the driver signaling a left turn. If a collision is likely, the driver is immediately warned.
Future features
A feature of the future involves intersection movement assist, where drivers are warned of possible crashes when approaching a crossroad from multiple directions. With the combination of these new and proposed features combined with brighter headlights, front crash protection, lane departure, and blind spot taction, the potential for an accident is significantly reduced.
Motor vehicles have undergone significant upgrades in safety-related technology over the years. Intersection-assistance features are one of the latest introductions and are not as high-profile. Yet, they could help reduce injuries and fatalities of middle-aged and elderly drivers.
