The little bell goes off in my head whenever I see a story of a car careening through the window or front door of a store.

It beckons me to ask myself, “could that have been the work of an elderly driver?”
And many times the answer is “yes!”

Which prompts the question, “then why is it that we resist retesting seniors every few years to see if they still have proficiency driving?”

A friend recently told me of observing his dad’s driving habits – like misjudging lanes.
I said that was the first sign that at some point the keys may have to be taken away.

And I know it’s easier said than done.

A 71-year-old woman lost control of her car, jumped a curb and careened through the front door of a Rutherford pharmacy Wednesday, hitting a woman who managed to escape serious injury, police said.

The 18-year-old Rutherford woman jumped out of the way of the 2009 Chevrolet, but was hit on her lower right side at the Park Avenue store, according to Capt. Patrick A. Feliciano. She complained of pain, but opted to seek treatment from her own doctor following the 12:43 p.m. crash.

Feliciano said the woman was clearly aware of her surroundings and the injuries could have been far worse. The driver, also from Rutherford, was not hurt.

“It’s nothing short of a miracle considering what could have happened,” the captain said.
Firefighters needed to cut away the glass automatic doors to remove the car before it could be driven away, authorities said. Seconds after the crash, a group of onlookers gathered to snap cell phone photos of the car.

A cashier told The Record the accident was the third time in two years when a vehicle slammed into the front of the store.

In November, a shopper at the Westwood Trader Joe’s was seriously hurt when a 75-year-old motorist slammed through a window at the supermarket.

71 in one case, 75 in another.

I realize these are ages that today would be considered relatively “young” and still relatively capable of handling a car – yet at some point it would be prudent to retest seniors – even those considered relatively “young” – like say, beginning at 65.

What say you?

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