Wow. This is worthy of as much research as possible. Driver ability and driver mindset are equally important i think. Mindset being our attitude, our reaction to events, our opinion of others, our opinion of rules, our anger triggers etc etc. I think once we start looking into the reason people with autism were flagged, we will find outselves on a rollercoaster. We'll all be off the road! 😅 Everything about us as individuals can be put under a 'Health' heading! So listing Autism only is discriminatory and it certainly doesn't stay the course ! Haha( unintentional pun)
I think this really comes down to what the medical clearance is and what the rationale is. Generally, I would think that just managing the stress and challenges of learning to drive and passing the tests would be a sufficient screening for whether or not a person's particular point on the autism scale is compatible with driving. Testers should be trained to spot any major red flags for new drivers, autism related or not. As professional driver, I don't think this law is intended to be the ableist nightmare it seems, though it could certainly turn out that way. There's a good chance this could be something as simple as requiring autistic drivers have a professional instructor who will evaluate their ability to cope with the entirety of the driving task objectively. It might be a one-page form where your doctor or therapist signs off that they don't have a significant occurrence of autism specific behaviors that would make them vulnerable or dangerous on the road. Maybe it's a questionnaire at the DMV that checks you're driving IQ: you proved you know the rules, but do you know when to break them, or what the etiquette is when there isn't one? Inconvenient? Yes. Unfair? Probably. Options that should be applied to the general population if they're successful? Definitely. Calamity? I sure hope not.
I haven't been officially diagnosed with ASD, but I did a series of tests with a psychologist at Vanderbilt University here in the States, and he said the likelihood that I would be diagnosed is very high. I just didn't have the ability at the time to complete the 6 hour final test. It's things like this that scare me from pursuing that diagnosis.
I doubt it, I'd just guess it's poorly thought out. Like if someone is severely autistic and they aren't fit to drive, yeah sure they shouldn't drive, but they probably aren't applying anyway, so it's just weirdly testing people who are capable of driving. But by the sounds of it it's if you are clearly capable of driving then it makes no odds. Definitely seems poorly thought out though haha
Wow. This is worthy of as much research as possible. Driver ability and driver mindset are equally important i think. Mindset being our attitude, our reaction to events, our opinion of others, our opinion of rules, our anger triggers etc etc. I think once we start looking into the reason people with autism were flagged, we will find outselves on a rollercoaster. We'll all be off the road! 😅 Everything about us as individuals can be put under a 'Health' heading! So listing Autism only is discriminatory and it certainly doesn't stay the course ! Haha( unintentional pun)
I think this really comes down to what the medical clearance is and what the rationale is. Generally, I would think that just managing the stress and challenges of learning to drive and passing the tests would be a sufficient screening for whether or not a person's particular point on the autism scale is compatible with driving. Testers should be trained to spot any major red flags for new drivers, autism related or not. As professional driver, I don't think this law is intended to be the ableist nightmare it seems, though it could certainly turn out that way.
There's a good chance this could be something as simple as requiring autistic drivers have a professional instructor who will evaluate their ability to cope with the entirety of the driving task objectively. It might be a one-page form where your doctor or therapist signs off that they don't have a significant occurrence of autism specific behaviors that would make them vulnerable or dangerous on the road. Maybe it's a questionnaire at the DMV that checks you're driving IQ: you proved you know the rules, but do you know when to break them, or what the etiquette is when there isn't one?
Inconvenient? Yes. Unfair? Probably. Options that should be applied to the general population if they're successful? Definitely. Calamity? I sure hope not.
What an outta nowhere policy. I wonder what process went into making that decision.
I haven't been officially diagnosed with ASD, but I did a series of tests with a psychologist at Vanderbilt University here in the States, and he said the likelihood that I would be diagnosed is very high. I just didn't have the ability at the time to complete the 6 hour final test. It's things like this that scare me from pursuing that diagnosis.
Yay ableism /s
I doubt it, I'd just guess it's poorly thought out. Like if someone is severely autistic and they aren't fit to drive, yeah sure they shouldn't drive, but they probably aren't applying anyway, so it's just weirdly testing people who are capable of driving. But by the sounds of it it's if you are clearly capable of driving then it makes no odds. Definitely seems poorly thought out though haha