SA drivers hold on to licences despite being medically unfit to drive

Hundreds more sick drivers are opting to stay on the road rather than handing in their licence.

Hundreds of drivers who may be too sick to remain on the roads are holding on to their licences because of Covid-19 uncertainty.

While 7816 medically unfit drivers were taken off the road in 2019-20, this number slumped to 6541 in 2020-21.

The Transport Department has blamed disruption to medical checks, many of which were suspended for six months last year so doctors could focus on the pandemic.

A department spokesman has warned drivers that they must now comply with normal “fitness to drive” procedures.

“Under these temporary measures, the due date for submitting a certificate of fitness was temporarily extended for some licence holders,’’ he said.

“These measures were dependent on the licence class and type of medical condition in the interests of road safety. These temporary measures are no longer in place and licence holders must provide any medical evidence as required within the usual time frames.”

Common reasons for motorists to be taken off the road or voluntarily give up their licence include bad eyesight, alcoholism and heart conditions.

From the age of 75, and if no previous medical condition is recorded, a self assessment is posted before the driver’s birthday each year.

In the last financial year car drivers who volunteered to take themselves off the road fell by 20 per cent from 3081 to 2453. Heavy vehicle driver volunteer numbers remained similar, with 373 in 2019-20 and 355 in 2020-21.

Drivers and doctors are also supposed to tell the Registrar of Motor Vehicles when an illness may affect driving at any age. These drivers require annual medical checks.

In the past year, registrar cancellations for car drivers dropped 3.7 per cent from 3342 to 2885, the lowest level since 2015-16.

For heavy vehicle drivers, the number dropped from 177 to 141 taken off the roads.

Medical suspensions of car drivers by the registrar dropped from 810 to 617 and heavy vehicle from 93 to 90.

RAA road safety spokesman Charles Mountain said the drop in the past two years came after high figures for licence cancellations.

“It is pleasing to see that in the 75-plus age bracket there are still significant numbers of licences being surrendered,’’ he said.

Drivers also regulate themselves, he said.

“They know the situations which cause them stress and … they will avoid these, like night driving, long trips, peak hour and so on,’’ he said. “Drivers who are not totally comfortable on the road will have a restricted pattern of travel, such as to the shops and back.”