Editor:

Recently the Motor Vehicle Branch informed me that I had to take and pass a drivers’ medical test in order to keep my driver’s licence. The cost was $75.

Since 2006 it has cost me $217 to keep my licence. I was told the possibility exists that I could be called upon to take a test each year at a cost of $75 per year, plus the standard fee of $17 as a seniors’ renewal rate in November 2014.

I am very active on the Sunshine Coast daily and require my car, not only for local transportation, but also off-Coast for medical reasons. I reported to the medical clinic and met with the doctor who would conduct the test. I must admit to a certain amount of apprehension at the possibility of failing the test and being without a licence. I passed the vision test and met the requirements of the physical test. Then the doctor mentioned a number of items and I would have to repeat a specific number of them as part of the test. I do not recall how many I remembered, but apparently enough to pass the test.

I left her office secure in the knowledge that I would have my licence for at least another year. The possibility of losing my licence due to the fact that I had trouble with my memory was to say the least, unnerving.

There are many drivers on the Sunshine Coast who “forget” to come to a full stop at a stop sign. Based on my experience, I would suggest those drivers, if apprehended, should be required to take a memory test. The results would probably reduce the number of dangerous drivers on the Coast.

Don Hensler

Gibsons