Driver Licencing

Question: My 89 year old father voluntarily restricted his driver's license after an at fault single vehicle accident 5 years ago. He is now limited to local driving only. While recently vacationing in Washington State he asked “can I drive here?” I wasn’t sure as lives in Lillooet B.C.

I often hear comments that a friend or family member should not be driving. This person is usually either an older driver or a person suffering from health issues known to the person making the comment.

Question: Why is there such a discrepancy in price for a medical exam for people turning 80 years old? My doctor quoted $80 before he retired and when I went to a walk in clinic to get the test recently it was $200. That seems quite unfair to me.

One of the blessings of running this web site are the "conversations" that I have with the people who find me through my writing. Sometimes they share some very personal views with me and occasionally allow me to share it here. This is one of those stories.

Drivers in the Graduated Licensing Program (GLP) are forbidden to use electronic devices while driving. Mira McEachern was a 17 year old novice driver on September 17, 2016 when she was issued a traffic ticket for violating this rule. She was convicted of that offence (records do not indicate if it was because she paid the fine or was not successful in a traffic court dispute).

Rogan Lovse is a novice driver with a history of two speeding tickets and a two month driving prohibition brought on by those tickets. On receiving a third ticket for speeding, the Superintendent sent him a notice of intention to prohibit him from driving for five months.

Asking for people to send me their thoughts at the end of last week's article resulted in one of the largest responses I've ever received. Ultimately, the overwhelming choice of advice was to report the offending driver to ICBC and the police. Fewer people were willing to shrug their shoulders and carry on with life while two offered emotional support.

This is a short story about things that go bump in the parking lot. The outcome could have been a lot simpler with a bit of courtesy and the sharing of required information but it didn't happen that way. I wonder what the ultimate cost will be when all is said and done.