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Police in Kofu, Yamanashi Prefecture, said Friday they have arrested an 80-year-old man on suspicion of dangerous driving resulting in death after the vehicle he was driving hit and killed a 54-year-old man.
According to local media, the incident occurred at around 8 p.m. Thursday at an intersection on a prefectural highway. The victim, Tadashi Sawada, a company employee from Nagoya, was crossing the street with a friend when he was hit by a car driven by Kenji Uraki.
Sawada’s friend called 110. The victim was taken to hospital where he died about one hour later.
Police identified Uraki’s car after analyzing street surveillance camera footage. Fragments from his orange-colored car were found at the scene.
© Japan Today
12 Comments
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Rodney
I hope they don’t be lenient because of his age. Dead person is gone but friends and family continue to suffer, sometimes for the rest of their lives.
dbsaiya
Japan really needs a law requiring the elderly to take tests on reaction and cognitive ability before renewing their licenses. Renewals should be yearly or every 6 months depending on the results of the past tests. These accidents are all symptoms of an aging society and laws not keeping up with the changing times.
Hercolobus
Rip. I will surrender my license when my faculties start failing me.
WA4TKG
The last place I was before leaving Japan, Yamanashi, Isawa- Onsen station
Spitfire
Instead of making the renewing of licenses more stringent for seniors they have actually lowered the pass mark from 85% to 35% because so many farmers are elderly if their licenses were revoked Japan wouldn't have any rice to put on the table.
master
the country needs mandatory and very strict yearly testing for every person over the age of 75.
garypen
In addition to the testing everyone is suggesting here, all new vehicles need to be equipped with all of the current safety systems as standard equipment, even kei's.
Charlie Sommers
I live in Tennessee and not Japan but I recognized my deteriorating ability to drive safely a couple of years ago. I donated my car to Habitat for Humanity so I wouldn't be tempted to drive. I can order many things online for home delivery. The small delivery fee is more than offset by savings on gas, insurance and automobile maintenance.
kaimycahl
@Spitfire I totally agree. It’s give or take in this case the government is taking. Many old people with licenses are farmers if their licenses were revoked Japan would have problems with farming because the younger people will not do the job.
Sister Jane
They already require test, there is one for 70 to 75, and another that's tougher after you reach 75, so evidently this old guy passed the test already, because at 80 he had to have taken 2 tough test, or perhaps he was driving without a license. When I reached 70 I took a test, I will admit in the driving test one old 80 year old grandmother scared me to death with her driving skills, which were little to none, it's probably too easy to pass the test.
As one comment said, most of the farmers are old in Japan, maybe if they made the test more difficult those folks could not plant their crops, there should be a special law for the farmers, they had them in Kansas, there you could drive at 14 or 15 if it was farm related. (I know of no farmers in my area under 50, some are in their late 80's.) I agree the test should be a little harder to pass. Most folks I know that feel they can no longer drive, turn in their license or just do not drive, the license itself is a nice ID.