Universities find flaws in drivers’ vision testing

Vision screening of drivers needs to be modernised according to fresh research findings by two UK universities.

Anglia Ruskin University last week renewed calls for compulsory eye examinations for all drivers after its latest research found 15 per cent of those able to read a number plate at 20 metres failed to achieve the required 6/12 on the Snellen chart test.

Dr Latham, senior lecturer in Vision and Hearing Sciences at Anglia Ruskin University, said: ‘Given that there are now two standards, we wanted to investigate whether these two tests pass and fail the same drivers. Our research shows that drivers who pass one test do not necessarily pass the other.