Maintaining a driver’s license is an important issue of independence for older Canadians, especially to those who have driven for most of their life. The Canada Safety Council reports that on a per-person basis, mature drivers have less than the average number of collisions.

But on a per-kilometre basis, the over-70 age group is involved in a disproportionately high number of collisions.

The Council recommends that seniors take a driver improvement course such as the Canada Safety Council’s 55 Alive Driver Refresher Course. This is designed specifically to help older drivers improve their driving skills.

Community Care provides this course regularly and the next offering is coming up on Monday, June 19 and Tuesday, June 20 – both days from 9:00am to 12:00pm. Call soon to get on the list because space is limited and it fills quickly.

The course deals with changing road conditions, rules and regulations and the need to understand collision – prevention measures. It focuses on the problems which are common to older drivers, which include failure to yield the right of way, improper turning, incorrect lane changing, passing, and entering and exiting highways.

The sessions are made up of presentations, videos, group discussions and instructor guidance. There is no actual ‘on the road’ driving. The cost is $25 per person which includes a 100-page workbook, useful resources and a certificate. Many participants have taken this course two or three times to bolster their confidence when driving.

The instructor for this course is David Fox, who was trained by the Canada Safety Council. David, born and raised on a family owned farm in Prince Edward, is retired from the Hastings and Prince Edward District School Board, after a 36 year career as a teacher, school administrator and superintendent. Recently David has joined the local executive of the Retired Teachers of Ontario, and is now part of a community committee looking at intervention strategies for at risk youth, which is chaired by an officer assigned to the local OPP Detachment. Besides all of David’s qualifications and experience, he is perfectly suited to be the instructor for the 55 Alive Driver Refresher Course because he has a terrific sense of humour!

Registration is open to all people 55 and over. Space is limited. Registration and payment in advance is required.

Call 613-476-7493 for more information and to be sure your name is on the registration list. Payment is accepted over the phone or by cash/cheque.