On June 10, a car crashed into a supermarket in Shibukawa, Gunma Prefecture, injuring 14 people. At first the incident sounded like yet another elderly person losing control of a vehicle and causing destruction, but then it transpires that the driver was a 55-year-old man.
Does that count as elderly? Police arrested the man on suspicion of negligent driving resulting in injuries. Reports say he bore down on the accelerator after he felt the right side of his body go numb, a condition that could be age-related. When it comes to traffic accidents, 55 may be the new 75.
The conspicuous rise in auto accidents caused by older drivers, a development the media follows closely, has resulted in a nationwide movement to convince seniors to surrender their driving licenses. Although it's hardly a problem limited to Japan, the rapidly aging society combined with other factors peculiar to Japan make it one that calls for specific action.