Drivers over 70 could face mandatory eye tests every three years

The UK Government is considering compulsory eye tests every three years for drivers aged over 70 and a driving ban for those who fail.

Ministers are also considering cutting the drink-drive limit in England and Wales to bring it in line with Scotland, according to The Times.

The proposals, set to be published as part of a road safety strategy in the autumn, come amid concern about the number of people being killed or seriously injured on Britain’s roads.

Last year, 1,633 people were killed and almost 28,000 seriously injured in traffic incidents, and numbers have remained relatively constant following a large fall between 2000 and 2010.

A Labour source said: “At the end of the last Labour government, the number of people killed and seriously injured on our roads was at a record low, but numbers have remained stubbornly high under successive Conservative governments.

“In no other circumstance would we accept 1,600 people dying, with thousands more seriously injured, costing the NHS more than £2 billion per year.”

Meanwhile, the number of people killed in drink-driving incidents has risen over the past decade, reaching a 13-year high in 2022 and prompting concern that existing road safety measures are no longer working.

Under the plans being considered by Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander, the drink-drive limit in England and Wales could be cut from 35 micrograms of alcohol per 100ml of breath to 22 micrograms.

This figure would be in line with Scotland, which cut its drink-drive limit in 2014, and the rest of Europe, where no other country has a limit as high as that in England and Wales.

The UK is also one of only three European countries to rely on self-reporting of eyesight problems that affect driving, leading ministers to consider compulsory eye tests every three years for drivers aged over 70 and a driving ban for those who fail.

Other proposals are reported to include allowing the police to bring prosecutions for drug-driving on the basis of roadside saliva tests rather than blood tests as increasing numbers of drivers are being caught with drugs in their system.

The Labour source added: “This Labour Government will deliver the first road safety strategy in a decade, imposing tougher penalties on those breaking the law, protecting road users and restoring order to our roads.”

A Department for Transport spokesperson said: “Our roads are some of the safest in the world, but any death on the roads is a tragedy.

“Road safety measures have not been reviewed for over a decade, and we will set out the next steps for our strategy for road safety in due course.”

The strategy is due to be published in the autumn, and all proposals will be subject to consultation.