A quarter of elderly people feel socially isolated - because they don’t drive.
A poll of 1,000 adults aged 70 and over also found 53 per cent of those who are still driving fear the day they’ll no longer be able to take to the road by themselves.
Almost two thirds (63 per cent) are desperate not to rely on others to help them get about.
The research was commissioned by Nissan which found exactly a fifth of older people would take a ride in a safe self-driving car if it helped them maintain their independence.
And 93-year-old Brad Ashton has been given the chance to experience this automotive technology with a test drive in one of their autonomous vehicles around the village of Cranfield in Bedfordshire.
Talking about the experience, which saw Brad strap himself in for an exclusive 30 minute spin in the autonomous LEAF model through some narrow country lanes, said: “New technology like this is fantastic and it’s important to embrace it.
“Cars were different back in 1947 – you had to crank them up – so I’ve always wondered what the cars of the future would be like – and this is it.
