How an 84-year-old double-parked in Edison (Opinion)

There’s double-parking where it means to park a vehicle alongside a row of other vehicles already parked parallel to a curb.

Then there’s this kind of double-parking.

About 10:45 on Monday morning police in Edison received a call that there was a two-car accident in a parking lot at JFK Hospital. When authorities arrived they saw something they didn’t expect. In the parking lot at John F. Kennedy Medical Center a Toyota was entirely atop an Acura. Police say an 84-year-old driver accidentally put his Toyota in reverse.

According to Edison police he was parked in front of the other vehicle and mistakenly put it in reverse instead of drive, causing his car to climb right onto the hood then on top of the roof.

A crane was necessary to lift the Toyota off the Acura. That operation took about an hour and a half. The Acura’s damage was extensive but luckily it was not occupied at the time.

A car ending up entirely on top another car is crazy enough. What’s even crazier to me is that the driver was not issued any summons. How is this possible? If someone younger did this I’d be shocked if they didn’t receive a ticket.

I’ve heard too many stories of elderly drivers creating chaos but never being held accountable. I think that’s got to change. And driver re-testing needs to be established perhaps at 75. Definitely by 80.

Unfortunately elderly drivers confusing either a gas and brake pedal or drive and reverse is common enough. What's unusual is doing it to the point one ends up completely on top of another car. Luckily the elderly gentleman in this case was not injured.

The post above reflects the thoughts and observations of New Jersey 101.5 talk show host Jeff Deminski. Any opinions expressed are Jeff Deminski's own.