DGT under fire, seniors challenge Spain’s driving guide

Roads in Spain are safe, but the latest traffic policy has hit a nerve way beyond the highway. A recently published guide from the DGT (Dirección General de Tráfico) that targets elderly drivers sparked a national backlash, with pensioners accusing the government of reinforcing negative stereotypes about age. This backlash is not about driving, about dignity, independence, and how a society treats its elders in an age of record longevity. 

What did the DGT publish?

The DGT released a “Road Health Council Guide for Elderly Drivers and Their Immediate Environment,” a document that provides recommendations for drivers of advanced age and their families. While the guide’s goal is to promote road safety, its tone and framing are drawing fire because they suggest that age can be considered a “risk factor.” It encourages older drivers to consider when they should consider themselves unfit and hand over their keys, ideally with support from medical professionals or family members. That does sound reasonable until you read between the lines.

The pensioners respond that they are not a risk by default; the PMP, Platform for the Elderly and Pensioners, and other senior advocacy groups have condemned these guides. They argue that ageing does not automatically lead to deterioration and incapacity, so rather than recognising the diversity of health outcomes among older adults. PMP leaders like Jesús Norberto Fernández point out that the guide paints a very homogeneous picture of older drivers and risks pushing them into premature limitation, not through medical need but just a social assumption. 

Are older drivers dangerous?

Is age a reliable predictor of unsafe driving? This controversy raises this question, and studies such as AAA Foundation’s LongROAD study and Swansea University show that while vision and reflexes can decline with age, older drivers are statistically among the safest groups on the road. They tend to be more cautious and avoid high-risk conditions like night driving or motorways. Finally, they are even less likely to engage in risk behaviours like phone use or speeding. 

What increases the accident risk is not age per se but rather untreated medical conditions or a lack of proper assessments. Critics can argue that age-based guidance is a lazy policy that does not reflect the age factor. It can be changed to medical conditions to assess whether or not a person is viable on the road. 

In Spain, the rural and semi-rural regions are especially a lifeline to drive on, not a luxury. When older adults give up driving, they risk: 

• Losing access to groceries, healthcare, and social contact
• Increased isolation and depression
• A diminished sense of autonomy and identity

While promoting safety is essential, removing someone’s ability to drive without providing a viable mobility alternative creates more harm than good.

DGT agrees to rethink 

Following the backlash, the DGT Director General, Pere Navarro, met with the PMP and agreed to collaborate on future revisions. He acknowledged that balance, autonomy, and safety are needed to express openness and include perspectives from civil society.

 The main goal is to use tools for informed decision-making rather than paternalistic restrictions, said the PMP. The dialogue raises the larger issue of adapting public transport, improving road education, and offering logistical and emotional support when people need to stop driving.

Spain has the highest life expectancy in Europe; its older population is more vocal, active, and healthier than ever before. But this policy has to be more focused on mobility and autonomy, which have not been fully caught up yet. 

Safety matters, but so does dignity. If we treat every 60-70-year-old as a risk, we ignore the reality of ageing in the 21st century and risk pushing people to outdated margins because sometimes the most dangerous thing on the road is not the age but the assumption and stereotypes that follow.