Senior Driving and Joy Rides

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On a Sunday recently, I took my mom on a Joy Ride! Instead of a souped-up car, it was the Stillwater Senior Living bus filled with Residents looking for changes among familiar places. Others wanted to just enjoy the scenery. Traveling the countryside we spotted sheep and goats – even a few mother nursing lambs and kids. It was a reminder that spring is near.

Seniors are driving longer thanks to technology and safe habits, according The Midwest Traveler, an AAA publication.Turn-by-turn navigation, front and back crash warning systems are among those improving safety. In the US there are 36 million adults age 65 and older who drive. Improving their safety are habits that avoid driving at night, duringrush hour, on the highway, during bad weather or in unfamiliar areas.

Mom gave up driving at age 90.The truth was my father also preferred to drive, leaving less opportunities for her practice. Her confidence waned as her chances to drive diminished. Residing in an assisted living community doesn’t mean one has to give up driving.As long as a Resident has a valid driver’s license and the car is properly insured and maintained, Stillwater Senior Living Residents can keep their own cars. In fact, some Residents park right outside their patios. It’s so easy. Even those Residents with cars, many find it enjoyable to bechauffeured on occasion.

However, seniors who do give up driving are 5x more likely to enter a long-term care setting say studies by AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety and the University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute.

Assisted living communities like Stillwater Senior Living offer transportation to shop, attend events, take group excursions, and doctors’ appointments. What a relief to leave the driving and parking to someone else!

(Visit SeniorDriving.AAA.com)