Senior Who Drove Into Bank Lobby Rekindles Debate on Elder Drivers

A 91-year-old driver who backed into a San Fernando Valley bank lobby and killed a 1-year-old boy said Wednesday that he won’t drive again but disagreed with those who say some people are simply too old to drive.

“I don’t want to drive anymore because of what happened at the bank,” Val Conrad said the day after the fatal accident. “I’m very shook up about it and would rather not be on the road anymore.”

In the past, Conrad said, he has ignored those who told him he was too old to drive. He also touted his clean driving record and defended his legal right to drive. He passed a road test seven days ago, obtaining a valid, though heavily restricted license.

“If they pass the tests, why shouldn’t they be allowed to drive?” Conrad said at his home in Sylmar.

The accident that killed 1-year-old Nathaniel Escudero of Sylmar occurred on the same day that the California Assembly passed the Senior Drivers Bill, which would require the Department of Motor Vehicles to review elderly drivers’ abilities more closely at the request of a police officer, doctor or family member.

The case also highlights an issue of growing importance as America’s population of seniors and their political clout increase: More older people are on the road than ever before.

The trend has led auto companies to target senior citizens with safer, more comfortable cars and to the creation of special driving courses for older people. Aging motorists also have sparked a debate about what additional driving restrictions, if any, should be applied to them.

According to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, people age 65 and older are involved in more fatal car accidents than any age group except people younger than 25.

Orange County statistics from the California Highway Patrol show that drivers 65 and older were responsible for 8.1% of all fatal and injury accidents. That rate of responsibility for accidents compares with a statewide rate of 8.3%.

Orange County’s senior population is expected to grow from 290,000 to almost 520,000 in the next two decades, far outpacing any other age group. Over the next five years, though, the greatest population increase--20%--will be among so-called older seniors, those who are 85 and older.

Legislators have been reluctant to impinge on senior citizens’ driving privileges for fear of attracting the wrath of powerful and well-financed advocacy groups, such as the AARP, which lists 34 million members nationwide.

“I ran into a wall,” said state Sen. Tom Hayden (D-Los Angeles), who wrote the original Senior Drivers Bill that would have allowed the DMV to target elderly drivers for more frequent testing. The AARP opposed the version of the bill, SB 335.

“Anybody who voted for that bill would be accused of taking seniors’ licenses away,” Hayden said. The AARP endorsed the final version, which did not mention any particular age group and passed the Assembly by a vote of 68 to 7.

Pat Luby, an AARP lobbyist based in Sacramento, said one’s driving ability should be evaluated on an individual basis.

“The easiest thing to do when you have a tragedy like yesterday is say he shouldn’t be driving,” he said. “But we don’t know that . . . something might have happened to him right before the accident, a stroke or something.”

Det. Tom Whetzel of the LAPD’s Valley Traffic Division said police remain unclear about what caused the accident.

“I didn’t hit the brake,” Conrad said. “But I don’t remember hitting the accelerator either. I really don’t know what happened.”

DMV spokesman Evan Nossoff said Conrad obtained his most recent license Aug. 24 at the Arleta field office.

“We’re obviously concerned about that,” Nossoff said. “We’re going to look into that, being that he just passed a drive test.”

According to the DMV, Conrad was prohibited from driving at night, on the highway or without corrective lenses.

Nossoff said Conrad’s license was up for renewal on a yearly basis instead of the standard five-year period. Conrad is due to renew his license Dec. 5 because he applied so late in the year.

“Generally, one-year licenses are issued when there is a physical or mental condition at issue,” Nossoff said. Conrad’s specific case is confidential, he added.

But Conrad said he takes daily medications, including insulin for his diabetes.

Elderly drivers typically experience slower reflexes and impaired vision, said Dr. Ed Schneider, dean of USC’s Leonard Davis School of Gerontology. For example, senior citizens often lose some depth perception, particularly at night.

Arline Dillman, manager of traffic safety for the Automobile Club of Southern California, talked to focus groups of older drivers and their families recently and found that many senior motorists adopt techniques to compensate for problems caused by age.

“Many of them don’t drive at night or rush hour,” Dillman said. Others avoid making left-hand turns, a particularly challenging maneuver for some older drivers. Dillman said senior motorists also drive fewer miles than most, using their cars for short trips to the doctor or the grocery store.

At a time when more older people are living alone, “the car equals independence,” Dillman said.

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Times staff writer Monte Morin and Times correspondent Gina Piccalo contributed to this report. Greg Risling is a reporter for Times Community News, and Solomon Moore is a Times staff writer.