【Opinion】United Daily News — Po-Chang Lee / Managing the Risks of Elderly Drivers Cannot Rely Solely on Physical Examinations
May 28, 2026 00:02
United Daily News / Po-Chang Lee, Chair Professor, School of Public Health, Taipei Medical University (Taipei)
Taiwan has entered a super-aged society, and the issue of elderly driving safety has drawn increasing public attention. The government has recently promoted mandatory physical examinations, safety courses, and license renewal requirements for drivers aged 70 and above. The intention is to reduce risks associated with age-related declines in vision, reaction time, and cognitive function. Safeguarding road safety is certainly worth supporting. However, if the issue of elderly drivers is oversimplified into merely an “age problem,” we may fail to address the true causes behind traffic accidents.
Healthy and mentally alert seniors over the age of 70 are not necessarily more dangerous than younger drivers who drive while fatigued, intoxicated, or distracted by mobile phones. If age alone becomes the primary basis for regulation, governance risks devolving into administrative formalities rather than genuine risk management.
Public transportation in Taiwan’s rural areas and aging communities remains clearly insufficient. For many elderly individuals, cars and motorcycles are essential tools for daily life. Many seniors must independently travel for medical appointments, shopping, or family caregiving responsibilities. If policy design focuses excessively on restrictions and license renewal requirements without providing supporting transportation alternatives, some elderly individuals may choose to drive without a license, thereby creating another form of traffic risk that is even harder to regulate. Frontline police officers and local communities are already quite familiar with this reality.
At its core, the issue is whether Taiwan’s rule-of-law society imposes sufficient consequences on dangerous or illegal driving behavior. Taiwan already has a comprehensive framework of civil and criminal liability for traffic accidents, but there remains a gap between legal provisions and actual enforcement or public perception.
If negligence causes injury, offenders may be prosecuted under Article 284 of the Criminal Code for negligent bodily harm. If negligence results in death, Article 276 concerning negligent homicide applies, carrying a maximum penalty of five years’ imprisonment.
If a driver flees the scene after causing an accident, this constitutes hit-and-run under Article 185-4 of the Criminal Code. Furthermore, Taiwan’s laws already provide enhanced penalties for accidents caused by unlicensed drivers. Article 86 of the Road Traffic Management and Penalty Act stipulates that individuals driving without a valid license who cause injury or death may face penalties increased by up to one-half. The legal tools already exist; the question is whether society is truly committed to enforcing the principle that high-risk behavior must carry higher costs.
Civil liability must not be overlooked either. Traffic accidents resulting in death or severe injury may involve compensation not only for medical expenses and caregiving costs, but also for lost income, dependent support, and emotional damages. Compensation can easily reach millions or even tens of millions of New Taiwan dollars. True traffic safety is not merely about issuing traffic tickets; it is about establishing a legal culture in which accidents are thoroughly investigated and responsibility is fully borne.
If traffic governance relies only on physical examinations, training courses, and license renewal procedures while ignoring the violation culture, enforcement gaps, and lack of accountability that truly contribute to accidents, the result may simply be higher administrative costs without safer roads.
In reality, what should be managed is not age itself, but risk. What should be strictly enforced is not merely medical screening, but legal responsibility. Taiwan’s population aged 70 and above now exceeds one million people. Police officers cannot realistically rely solely on roadside inspections to verify whether every elderly driver possesses a valid license. Anyone who chooses to drive must recognize the responsibility they bear for road safety. Promoting this sense of personal responsibility should become part of the social culture actively encouraged by the government.
Japan requires cognitive function testing during license renewals for elderly drivers, but its system places greater emphasis on accident records and dangerous driving behaviors rather than relying solely on age restrictions. Some U.S. states incorporate physician evaluations, vision tests, and driving ability assessments, while certain Nordic countries have adopted tiered restrictions such as limiting nighttime driving or restricting access to specific roadways in order to balance mobility rights with public safety.
The issue of elderly drivers is fundamentally a transportation governance challenge within a super-aged society, not simply an “elderly problem.” If Taiwan’s elderly driver policies are to become truly effective, reforms should proceed in at least three directions:
- Establish self-assessment systems for driving ability, allowing drivers and their families to better understand risks related to vision, cognition, reaction time, medication side effects, and dementia.
- Rigorously pursue both civil and criminal liability in major traffic accidents so that dangerous driving behavior carries real consequences.
- Simultaneously strengthen alternative transportation options in rural and underserved areas; otherwise, restrictions on legal driving may simply push more people toward unlicensed driving.
