Most people eventually notice that night driving gets harder as they older. Headlights from oncoming vehicles seem painfully bright, glare on the road worsens and it becomes increasingly difficult to see lane lines and pedestrians.
Unfortunately, this is just the human condition. Vision changes with age, and some of those changes can make night driving difficult.
How aging affects vision after dark
Even people with excellent daytime vision can struggle to see clearly after dark. Multiple age-related changes contribute to the problem. For example:
- Less light reaches the retina: As people age, their pupils generally become smaller and don’t dilate as much in darkness. That means less light enters their eyes, making it harder to see at night.
- Greater sensitivity to glare: Changes in the eye’s lens can cause light to scatter, making oncoming headlights appear brighter and more distracting. Cataracts can make the problem worse.
- Reduced contrast sensitivity: Aging can make it harder to distinguish objects from their backgrounds. A pedestrian wearing dark clothing, for example, may be difficult to spot against a poorly lit road.
- Slower adjustment to changing light: Older eyes may take longer to adapt when moving between brightly lit and dark conditions. This can be particularly troublesome when approaching or leaving brightly lit intersections.
These changes don’t necessarily happen at the same time for everyone. However, drivers who experience significant difficulty seeing after dark need to be conscious of their limitations, particularly on unfamiliar or poorly lit roads.
When a car accident involving an older driver happens at night, it is reasonable to ask whether age-related vision difficulties played a part. A skilled personal injury attorney can help establish the appropriate degree of responsibility each driver should bear for the resulting losses.