The imprisonment of a general practitioner whose impaired vision caused death by dangerous driving has led to renewed calls to impose regular eye tests on drivers.
Dr Aloke Basu, who was suffering from glaucoma when he caused the death of a female pensioner, has been jailed for two years and disqualified from driving for life.
Caroline Perry of road safety charity Brake said: 'This is a tragic case which shows why it is essential that drivers are required to have their eyes tested regularly, and for eyesight problems to be reported in an effective way.'
Dr Basu was found to have been driving his Porsche with severely impaired vision in one eye and a borderline fail in the other when the accident occurred in Southend, Essex last year (News 13.05.11).
Perry added: 'Research shows that one in six drivers on the road cannot see well enough to pass a very basic eyesight test. Relying on drivers to manage their own vision and self-report problems is not enough.
'Brake is calling on the government to make eyesight tests every two years a requirement for driving licence holders, with the licence only valid if a driver has an up-to-date eye test result.'
Dr Basu was sentenced at Basildon Crown Court last week. The case follows a string of Westminster debates on drivers' vision requirements in the UK. Government proposals in February this year to make the number plate test easier were opposed by optical bodies and road safety groups. A final decision has been put off until October.
A survey by the RAC Foundation earlier this year found that four out of five motorists supported the introduction of compulsory eye tests for drivers every decade.