Shapiro Administration Highlights Resources for Pennsylvania’s 2.3 Million Older Drivers During Older Driver Safety Awareness Week

(File Photo of the PennDOT Logo)

Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News

(York, PA) Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT), Pennsylvania Department of Aging (PDA), Pennsylvania State Police (PSP), the Pennsylvanian Insurance Department (PID), and the American Automobile Association (AAA) shared safe driving advice and resources available for older Pennsylvanians with residents at the White Rose Senior Center in York yesterday during Older Driver Safety Awareness Week. Pennsylvania has a network of shared-ride service providers which are dedicated to keeping older adults engaged mobile and safe in their community. According to a release yesterday from every aforementioned organization except for AAA, here is some more information about these providers, links for more information about them and tips for drivers:

  • In 2024, there were 21,986 crashes involving at least one driver aged 65 or older that resulted in 308 total fatalities. This represents 19.8% of all crashes and 27.3% of all fatalities. Older drivers generally have fewer crashes per driver than the national average – but they have more crashes per mile of driving.

 

  •  The Senior Shared Ride Program allows seniors to ride at a reduced fare. More than 2.7 million senior shared ride trips were provided in FY 2024-25. Additionally, the Free Transit Program for Seniors allows citizens aged 65 or older to ride for free on a local, fixed-route service whenever local public transportation is operating. During FY 2024-25, there were more than 25 million senior Free Transit Trips.

 

  • While every person ages differently, aging typically brings certain — sometimes subtle — physical, visual, and cognitive changes that could impair an older person’s ability to drive safely. Older drivers and their families should work together to identify potential issues that may affect driving, outline courses of action to assist the older driver, and plan for when it’s time to hang up the keys.

 

  • To help older drivers who may have difficulties driving, PennDOT partnered with PA Department of Human Services and transit agencies to develop an online tool called Find My Ride that allows older drivers to access free ride services online. The app allows transit agencies to process applications more efficiently, so users can access benefits more quickly. The app can be found at: findmyride.penndot.pa.gov, or at www.pa.gov/penndot by clicking on Traveling in PA, then Public Transit Options.

A list of approved mature driver courses available can be found online on PennDOT’s Mature Driver Improvement Courses page by clicking here.

 

Signs that can indicate it may be time to limit or stop driving altogether include:

  • Feeling uncomfortable, fearful, or nervous when driving.
  • Unexplained dents/scrapes on the car, fences, mailboxes, or garage doors.
  • Frequently getting lost and frequent “close calls” (i.e. almost crashing).
  • Slower response times, particularly to unexpected situations.
  • Difficulty paying attention to signs or staying in the lane of traffic.
  • Trouble judging gaps at intersections or highway entrance/exit ramps.

 

  • PennDOT offers older drivers and their loved ones a resource to help assess older drivers’ abilities and offer guidance on next steps if their medical condition is reported to PennDOT. The Seniors Driving Safely publication series can be downloaded for free from the PennDOT Driver and Vehicle Services website by clicking here. The series also includes a publication designed to guide family and friends of older drivers in what can sometimes be difficult conversations about deciding to stop driving, as well as information for healthcare providers on PennDOT’s medical reporting program.

 

  • Additionally, CarFit is an educational program created by the American Society on Aging and developed with AAA, AARP, and the American Occupational Therapy Association. CarFit is designed to help older drivers find out how well they currently “fit” their personal vehicle, to learn how they can improve their fit, and to promote conversations about driver safety and community mobility.

 

The following safe-driving habits, which should be routine at any age, are especially useful to older drivers:

  • Plan ahead: lengthy car trips should be made during daylight hours. Morning may be best because most people aren’t as tired as they are in the afternoon.
  • Don’t drive in rush-hour traffic if you can avoid it. Plan trips after 9:00 AM or before 5:00 PM. Know what roads near home are most congested and avoid them.
  • When driving long distances, especially in winter, call ahead for weather and road condition updates.
  • Look ahead. Good drivers get a jump on trouble by looking far down the road and making adjustments before encountering problems that may involve other vehicles, pedestrians, bicyclists or animals.
  • Maintain a safe speed. This depends on what the road is like, how well the driver can see, how much traffic there is and how fast traffic is moving.
  • Keep a safe distance from the vehicle ahead of you. The PA Driver’s Manual advises that you should always keep a 4-second gap between you and the vehicle in front of you.