Seniors in Powell River will now have a less daunting task if they must prove they are competent to keep driving, but Nicholas Simons, MLA for Powell River-Sunshine Coast, believes fundamental problems with the testing still persist.
As a result of a meeting last February at Cranberry Seniors’ Centre, Simons said the government is going to allow seniors who are required to take the DriveABLE test to do so in Powell River through a local driving school. They will still, however, have to travel to Courtenay to take the computer-based cognitive test.
Seniors over the age of 80 who want to keep their driver’s licence have to take a medical examination with their doctor. Those who have been identified by their physician as having cognitive issues are referred by the office of the superintendent of motor vehicles to DriveABLE. The cost of the test is covered by the provincial government.
Initially, seniors were required to travel to Nanaimo to take the computerized cognitive ability test. Then the government agreed to open a testing location in Courtenay due to the difficulty Powell River seniors were facing having to drive to an unfamiliar city and taking a test with technology that most seniors were not only unfamiliar with but also intimidated by.
“Lots of people were failing not because of cognitive ability, but because they were freaked right out,” said Maggie Hathaway, constituency assistant for Simons. “They were terrified. They don’t do computers.”
Simons said there are too many examples of seniors getting their licences back after they prove to the government that they are fine to drive. The appeal process is costly. Seniors who fail the test have to pay $350 to take the test again and have to pay for the ferry to Comox.
“Every licencing office has a computer,” he said. “Although it is a special program, it’s not like it isn’t portable. It’s ridiculous to suggest that the infrastructure can’t exist here.”
Simons said he’s still not satisfied with the program.
“There’s still no scientific evidence to suggest that this test is valid or fair,” he said. “One of the government’s promises was that they would get the program peer-reviewed. This is something that I think they should have done prior to implementing it.”
Simons added that these small steps toward making the test more convenient are meaningless if the test is unfair for seniors.
