Older drivers bridle at blanket criticism

"I watch them drive over center islands, almost hit each other, go the wrong way," she said. "They are serious accidents waiting to happen, and just shouldn't be on the road."

But inside the senior center, elderly drivers bristle at the perception that they pose a threat to public safety. Most welcomed the idea of road testing, confident they would pass with relative ease. Plus, they said, the test would weed out the weaker drivers who have been giving them a bad name.

"Just because I'm 90 years old doesn't mean I can't drive," said Natalie Fultz, a Milton resident who drives regularly. "I'll pass whatever test they give me."

As authorities yesterday charged an 89-year-old woman with the death of 4-year-old Diya Patel, who was struck last weekend while crossing a street in Stoughton, the calls for regulating elderly drivers took on a new urgency. And seniors who would be affected by stricter oversight are supporting the idea with surprising vigor.

While confident they would be able to recognize a decline in their skills, they see the value in placing the decision in someone else's hands.

"I think I'm a fine driver," said Doris Kelly, 78. "But we all do."

The debate intensified on Beacon Hill yesterday, with Patel's family angrily demanding prompt action and Governor Deval Patrick vowing to sign legislation that would require older drivers to pass a road test every five years.

Prosecutors have charged Ilse Horn, the driver in Saturday's fatal accident, with vehicular homicide and revoked her license. Horn has been found responsible for five car crashes since 1982, according to her driving record.

The Stoughton accident was the latest crash involving elderly drivers that has stoked public anger over minimal government oversight. Massachusetts drivers must renew their licenses every five years, but are required to take an eye test every 10.

Earlier this month, a 93-year-old man drove his car into the entrance of a Wal-Mart in Danvers, injuring six people, after he mistook the gas pedal for the brake. The next day, seven people were injured in Plymouth after a car driven by a 73-year-old woman jumped a curb and ran into a crowd gathered at a war memorial. It was the woman's third accident since turning 70.

But some senior advocates criticized age-based testing as discriminatory and ineffective, and urged legislators to consider alternatives that do not single out senior citizens. Mandating road tests, they said, will do little to weed out dangerous drivers.

"There's no evidence it will improve public safety," said Elizabeth Dugan, a University of Massachusetts at Boston gerontologist and organizer of Safe Roads Now, a coalition opposed to age-based testing. "It will take more work and more sophistication, but we can do better."

Dugan, the author of "The Driving Dilemma: The Complete Resource Guide for Older Drivers and Their Families," said she supports more frequent, in-person license renewals, but said the registry should reserve scrutiny for drivers who have been involved in recent accidents or developed medical conditions that could affect their driving fitness.

"There's no proven benefit to that [age-based] approach," she said. "It's targeting the wrong people."

Other advocates, including the state's AARP chapter, and legislators said the narrow focus of age-based retesting would do little to improve safety.

"My philosophy is to take the age out of it," said state Senator Stephen Buoniconti, who wants to allow doctors to report risky drivers without fear of liability.

Vincent Pedone, a Worcester legislator, is proposing that all drivers take a road test every other renewal, saying the public safety benefit would be worth the expense.

"This is an equitable alternative that doesn't run into problems along the lines of age discrimination," he said. "We have a terrible system in place right now, and this would help get bad drivers off the road in a fair way."

The spate of highly publicized accidents involving seniors, Sullivan said, has forced older drivers to take a hard look at their own skills. On Friday, nearly 100 people filled the senior center for a presentation on safe driving practices and warning signs for diminished abilities.

"It's definitely hitting home," she said. "But they are so reluctant to admit it to themselves. They don't want to lose that last part of their independence."

For that reason, some seniors worry that the increased oversight will cost them their driving privileges.

"They say 'Mary Ann, Why are you so mean to us? You're supposed to be advocating for us,' " she said. "But I am advocating for them."

Even elderly supporters of testing said they fear they would be held to a stricter standard because of their age, and said they should have the right to appeal denials. The idea of losing their license, many said, is heart-wrenching.

"It would ruin me," said Jean Dudley, 85. "I'm so dependent on it. If I couldn't drive, I'd have to be dependent on someone else."

Dudley, like other seniors, said she will "know when it's time" to put her driving days behind her.

Senior advocates aren't so sure.

"I see so many people who are unable to give up their keys," said Nancy Stuart, the council's outreach coordinator. "There aren't too many people who willingly take themselves off the road."

For instance, Stuart and Sullivan have tried to convince Phil Byrnes, 83, who had a stroke a few years back, that it may be time to quit driving.

Byrnes admits the stroke stole some of his mental functions, and that he has a hard time putting thoughts into words. But he says his reflexes are as good as ever.

Later, Sullivan watched as Byrnes walked slowly across the parking lot to his car, its passenger side dented. He started the car, and after a long pause, backed out slowly, then made a wide turn. At the end of the row, he paused for several seconds before heading along.