West Mercia Police aiming to improve and educate road safety through virtual reality programme
The sessions are aimed specifically at helping drivers understand the changes that happen as we age.
West Mercia Police are aiming to improve people's road safety by showing how growing older can impact their driving through a virtual reality programme.
The “Keep Driving VR” film has been produced collaboratively by local authority partners across the country and the national Older Driver Forum, using virtual reality technology to visually highlight areas that become more challenging through getting older.
Across West Mercia over the last five years (2020-2024) there were 34 fatalities and 259 serious injuries involving drivers aged 70 and above according to the force.
Roads policing inspector Darren Godsall says they also ran the session last year and it's all about increasing people's understanding of these changes.
He said: "This isn't about putting an age or a label on a particular part of our community, but it's about raising awareness of the risks associated with driving on our roads.
"The virtual reality equipment that we use places the individual into an environment where it's safe, where it's protected, but it gives a very real impression of how much you perceive risk on the road.
"It then looks at whether you can identify those hazards on the road and whether or not you need to consider how you drive on the road to maximise your own safety and that of other road users."
Sessions are set to run through the summer months across Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Shropshire with more information on the West Mercia Police website.