The number of fatal accidents caused by drivers aged 75 or older fell to 401 in Japan in 2019, accounting for 14.4 percent of the total, slightly lower than a record high seen the previous year, police data showed Thursday.
Despite the fall, the figure is still considered worryingly high given the nation's rapidly aging population. The number of deadly accidents caused by the elderly dropped 59 from 2018, according to the National Police Agency.
The number of fatal traffic accidents per 100,000 license holders aged 75 or older stood at 6.9 in 2019, down 1.3 from the previous year, and more than double the figure of 3.1 for those aged under 75.
In April last year, an 88-year-old former senior bureaucrat hit and killed a toddler and her mother when he drove through a red light in Tokyo's bustling Ikebukuro district after mistakenly pressing the gas pedal instead of the brake.
The accident sparked public outcry and calls for preventive measures to be taken to reduce the frequency of road fatalities caused by the elderly.
The NPA aims to submit a bill to revise the road traffic law so that senior drivers with records of traffic offenses will be obliged to have their driving skills tested when they renew their licenses.
The agency also plans to introduce a new license which only allows drivers to operate cars equipped with advanced road safety features, such as a brake to prevent unintentional acceleration, as part of efforts to reduce the number of accidents.
By accident type among the 401 fatal incidents, 77 involved collisions with objects such as utility poles and road signs, there were 67 collisions with other vehicles when passing, 60 head-on accidents and 55 in which a car veered off the road.
The agency also analyzed the causes of the 385 deadly accidents that did not involve a motorcycle, and among them, 29.9 percent, or 107 cases, were blamed on driver error.
Of those cases, 14.8 percent, or 53, were put down to errant steering inputs, and mistaking the gas pedal for the brake 7.8 percent, or 28 cases.
The overall number of people killed in traffic accidents in 2019 fell to 3,215, the lowest level since comparable data became available in 1948, while the total number of road traffic accidents last year also decreased from the previous year to 381,237, according to the data.
Related coverage:
Japan eyes new driving skills test for elderly with traffic offense records
Tougher Japan penalties for smartphone use while driving take effect
Ex-bureaucrat referred to prosecutors over fatal car crash in Tokyo
Electric bikes gaining in popularity in Japan amid graying population
