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CARS
Self-driving cars

Survey: Drivers 50 and up want more car safety tech

Kimiya Manoochehri
USA TODAY


In the quest to be able to keep driving in the coming years, more drivers 50 and up are eager to try the latest in car-safety tech that might help them stay behind the wheel, a new study finds.

Charles Riley of Menlo Park and his daughter Frances Riley Bright with Charle's car, a silver Taurus, out front of Frances's home in Millbrae, Calif.

Some 76% of drivers in that age group surveyed   say they would look for a car with the latest safety features, finds the online survey by insurer The Hartford.

"Our findings indicate that some drivers, age 50-plus, would be more willing to drive in certain situations if they had particular technologies," said Jodi Olshevski, a gerontologist who is executive director of The Hartford Center for Mature Marketing Excellence. They study suggests "they associate advanced technologies with enhanced safety,”

They are looking for advanced safety features like blind-spot warning, crash mitigation, lane-departure warnings and advanced headlights.

Some of new technologies pave the way toward self-driving cars, which are still a few years away. The study found only about one in four older drivers is opposed to going driverless. Some 35% are willing to give it a try, and 42% don't know enough yet to say.

In order to be willing to back driverless cars, 56% said they need to know they would be as safe as driving themselves. Some 48% would use them if their health prevented them from driving, 27% would use them if they helped them stay connected to friends, 27% if they were cheaper than a regular car; and 17% if they were recommended by someone they trust.

The survey was conducted online from 2,015 responses in March with a 2.2% margin of error, The Hartford says.

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