Mary Lassiter is 94, and wheels her 2005 Honda around the streets near her Garner home, tooling out to busy U.S. 70 and even striking out as far as Florida. A driver since "before they had licenses," Lassiter enjoys the independence.

"I'm just as happy as I can be," she said. "I'll just look at the cars going by. I'll say, 'This is my lane. If you stay in yours, we're going to be friends.' "

Lassiter's defensive driving philosophy has mostly served her well, but some other seniors have proved less adroit. Statistics show that older drivers have more crashes, per mile driven, than any other group except young, inexperienced drivers.

Even though older drivers generally drive fewer miles and are less prone to speeding and drunken driving, the coming demographic swell of aging Americans has prompted state and national officials to search for ways to make the roads safer.

* Traffic engineers are identifying intersections that are difficult for older drivers, and recommending ways to fix them.

* State transportation officials are considering traffic and highway signs that are much easier to read -- especially at night.

* This year, state House members proposed requiring older drivers to renew their licenses as often as once a year, instead of the current five years. It didn't pass, but a similar law goes into effect Saturday in Texas.

"If we improve the roadway for senior drivers, there's a pretty good chance we're improving it for all drivers," said Phyllis Bridgeman, transportation consultant for the state Division of Aging and Adult Services, who opposed the legislation.

In August, state traffic engineers enlisted AARP volunteers and others to start visiting more than two dozen intersections where a high percentage of the crashes have involved drivers older than 65. Then engineers hope to fix the problems.

"We look at the crash history and the pattern that's affecting older drivers," said traffic engineer Kevin Lacy. "Maybe there's a sight distance issue or something else that we're not noticing."

Risky left turns

Research suggests that left turns onto divided highways present special challenges to older drivers, who may have limited vision, impaired depth perception and even difficulty craning their necks to check for traffic.

Similarly difficult are interchanges where all entrance and exit ramps are on the same side of the roadway, according to state crash statistics.

One change likely to help all drivers is the gradual introduction of a new typeface for highway signs. It's called Clearview -- 10 years in the making and statistically shown to be easier for all drivers to read, but especially those over 65. About 20 states are adopting the new font, while others, including North Carolina, are considering it.

"When we make the decision to go to Clearview font, we will just design all signs with it from that point forward," Lacy said. "What you would see is a gradual change in the signs, with a maintenance need or a new highway."

License renewal

There are continued efforts to test older drivers more frequently than other drivers. Rep. Leo Daughtry, a Smithfield Republican, co-sponsored a bill that would have required older drivers to renew licenses as often as annually, and mandated that drivers over age 75 take road tests at renewal.

"I believe that people get to a certain age and their reflexes maybe aren't as good as they were," Daughtry said. "Their eyesight might not be as good as it was; unfortunately, in some cases their minds aren't as good as they used to be."

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