Wrong-way driving targeted
Written by Writer on Friday, November 14th, 2008
Wrong-way driving targeted
The Yomiuri Shimbun
OSAKA–Companies and public corporations operating expressways nationwide have intensified efforts to prevent driving on the wrong side of expressways, as nearly 1,000 such cases have occurred annually in recent years, many involving elderly drivers.
Among the measures is the development of navigation systems and sensors that warn vehicles when they have entered the wrong lane.
In 2006, 952 of the wrong-way incidents were recorded, and there were 945 in 2007. Most of the cases were caused by driver confusion at the entrances and exits of service areas.
On Oct. 1, an 87-year-old man died after his car traveled about four kilometers on the wrong side of the Hokkaido Expressway in Sapporo and collided head-on with a vehicle coming from the opposite direction. Prior to the accident, the man had turned his car around near a tollgate exit of the expressway and entered the wrong side of the expressway.
According to the National Police Agency, 13 percent of accidents resulting in injuries last year were caused by people aged 65 or older. The same group accounted for about 40 percent of the year’s 35 wrong-way driving accidents.
Behind the high percentage is an aging driving population, with people aged 65 or older accounting for 11 million or 14 percent of all drivers.
In July, expressway operators began installing sensors that would trigger illuminated stop signs or other warnings at 24 locations, mainly near service areas.
The operators will study their effects over a five-year period.
West Nippon Expressway Co. in Osaka set up a team in May to coordinate with car manufacturers to develop a car navigation system that warns vehicles traveling in the wrong direction.
The agency assumes that about 300,000 licensed drivers aged 65 and older suffer from dementia.
Last year alone, 162 drivers had their driver’s licenses revoked due to the disease.
Beginning in June, licensed drivers aged 75 and older will have their cognitive abilities tested when their licenses are renewed.
Nihon University Prof. Kunimichi Takada, a traffic engineering expert, said: “Due to the decreasing number of children and the rise of the nuclear family, there are fewer young people to stop the elderly from driving when their abilities become questionable. All we can do is stop them physically with crossing gates or other tools.”
(Nov. 14, 2008)
