The course is even listed on the PDA, PA Department of
Aging! When you arrive on the page the “hook”
is an auto discount for older adults.
The first site listed to contact is AARP. Of course, AAA is also listed and then Area
Agency on Aging. It is all downhill from
there.
The course itself was a great reminder of driving techniques
which become second nature or automatic, new signage and new technology for cars
along with advanced ommunications. The course reviews
new recommendations such as the proper way to hold a steering wheel is not the
positions of 10 and 2 but 8 and 4. Why
the change? Air bags damaging hands and arms when they are deployed. When I started driving, airbags were not
standard equipment. Next year ESC,
Electronic Stability Control, will be standard equipment which will help stabilize a car going around a curve.
Much of the discussion centered on the aging
driver. The ways humans age was shocking
to me and even more so that I was considered in that group! After age 55 many cannot raise their arms
perpendicular to the floor, many cannot turn their necks to see the blind spots
on their cars and the list continued. I
felt really bad about myself after reading that section!
On Sunday, I went for a ten mile run, did some gardening,
laundry and cooking, I settled on my porch to finish the course and take the
test. I also had to regroup and think
this aging implication through. While I
may be in the group whose my eyes need more time to adjust to light changes
like riding along a tree lined street as the sunlight flickers in and out, I can
still raise my arms, turn my head and walk (run) at a fast pace. It seems maintaining the appropriate speed along
the roadway is a difficult task as one ages. 
While the course made me feel sad as to what can happen as I
age, it did provide me with a heads up kind of approach. So I need to be on the lookout for changes
in my vision and seek medical advice, look for new safety technology when
purchasing a car like blind spot warnings or install extra mirrors, keep
abreast of new laws about cell phones such as when they are legal to use and
when they are not and to keep updated with new laws or signs.
One cannot take a course on driving without a section on driving
under the influence, .08 BAC, blood alcohol content. Men metabolize alcohol faster than
women. For the average weight of a
female, more than 1.5 drinks in an hour would qualify for an arrest of
DUI. For men, it would take 2.5 drinks
in an hour. One should wait an hour
after finishing a drink before driving, as long as one is not going over the
drink per weight limit and what constitutes a “drink”. Of course, do not drink and take
medications statement is standard. Courses
did not stress the penalties of DUI when I took my driver's test in 1975
however studying with my daughters I learned the penalties. Even the term DUI was changed from DWI,
driving while intoxicated, to DUI to encompass drugs.
As you can see taking a course is always helpful. I learned information about myself, my car,
technology, laws, and driving in general.
The course is repeated in 3 years.
To entice people to take the course you earn a driver safety discount on
your automobile insurance. My discount
is $113.00 a year. I spent 8 hours
taking the course and $16.00 for the course for a discount of $113.00 each year
for the next three years. That return on
my dollar and the education is priceless.
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