Older drivers at greater risk for accidents

Workers 65 and older had three times the rate of fatal accidents, while behind the wheel, than younger workers aged 18 to 54.

Researcher Stephanie Pratt with The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says that was the case across nearly all demographic groups, industries and occupations.

She says most of the deadly worker accidents involved passenger cars and pick-ups, not big rigs.  Pratt says "only twenty-two percent of the workers in our data were driving a semi-truck."

There was an increase as early as the age of 55 but there was a big jump once workers reached 65 years old.  It may be due to declining vision, range of motion and cognitive abilities associated with getting older.