Wendy Stav selected for national speakers’ bureau on older driver safety

University of Florida older driving expert Wendy Stav, Ph.D., has been selected as one of 17 individuals to serve on The American Society on Aging’s DriveWell National Experts Speakers’ Bureau promoting older driver safety and mobility.

Stav, a research assistant professor in the department of occupational therapy at the College of Public Health and Health Professions, will serve as a technical resource on older driver safety and mobility in the Southeastern United States.

The effort, set to launch in spring 2005, is designed to promote community conversations that can lead to increased driver safety and more transportation choices for adults ages 65 and older. In some instances, the program might encourage older drivers to change when and how they drive; in other instances, older adults might be prompted to use alternative forms of transportation; or communities might decide to offer more transportation choices.

While Americans ages 70-plus are among the safest drivers on the road, they tend to suffer more serious injuries. The over-70 population, in fact, is the only age group in the past decade that has experienced increases in the number of traffic fatalities despite gains in safety belt use and improvements in vehicle technology.