Ensuring mobility for health, safety, and social inclusion in a super-aged society

2020 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 18K10081
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Section: 一般
• Review Section: Basic Section 58030:Hygiene and public health-related: excluding laboratory approach
• Research Institution: University of Tsukuba
• Principal Investigator: Ichikawa Masao 筑波大学, 医学医療系, 教授 (20343098)
• Co-Investigator(Kenkyū-buntansha): 中原 慎二 神奈川県立保健福祉大学, ヘルスイノベーション研究科, 教授 (40265658)
• Project Period (FY): 2018-04-01 – 2021-03-31
• Keywords: 高齢ドライバー / 政策評価 / 予防医学 / 疫学 / 健康増進

Outline of Final Research Achievements

We evaluated the effect of a cognitive test at license renewal for license holder aged 75 years or older, and found no significant effect on their crash risk but increased traffic injuries among older unprotected road users following the introduction of the test. This risk increase is possibly due to modal shift from driving to non-driving among older drivers. We also evaluated the impact of driving cessation among older drivers on their health, using cohort data, and found increased risk of functional limitations among those who stopped driving.

Free Research Field

公衆衛生学

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

近年、高齢運転者対策がますます強化され、社会的にも高齢者に運転中止を促す機運が高まっているが、その負の影響についてこれまで見過ごされてきた。高齢運転者は運転をやめれば事故を起こさなくなるが、運転者から歩行者などの交通弱者に立場を変え事故に遭ったり、社会的に孤立したりする可能性がある。本研究ではそれらを実証することで、現行の高齢運転者対策に一石を投じた。