Initial reports in the papers suggested that it was on a dangerous road and people often exceeded the 60mph limit. It was the safety of the road that was criticised and there are already plans to reduce the speed limit to 50mph This implied that the Duke may not have been at fault, but there is no reason to believe that. There was no question in the papers about the wisdom of such an elderly man driving and whether his reactions would be fast enough to cope with the quick decisions needed while driving on today's roads. I also read articles where Prince Phillip was casually included in the group of drivers over 70 and compared to the under 26’s, and which concluded that young drivers are the more dangerous. However, I'd suggest that a 70 year old is vastly different from a 97 year old and, although the Duke is physically and mentally healthy for his age, his capability to drive safely is doubtful.
To add to a thankfully unusual story, I noticed that the Archbishop of York tweeted a prayer in support of the Duke, and later one for the others involved. This all sounds so quintessentially British with a touch of irony and no one is rushing to point a finger in criticism. It's not as if he can't have someone drive for him and I imagine that a security officer in the car would feel more in control if it were the Duke who was the passenger. Isn't a person of that age a hazard on the road? What people may think, but have failed to say so far, is how ridiculous it is, for a number of reasons, that the Duke should be driving at all on public roads.
Within a day of the accident, a similar, replacement car has been delivered. That's surreal and indicates special treatment for the royal family that the general public may see in poor taste. An action like that may raise questions as to whether the Duke will also be treated by the police as an ordinary citizen after an accident. Will his driving ability be looked into? It would be unwise for the monarchy if not, as they now try to identify themselves with their loyal subjects.
Figures show that there are 110,000 drivers over 70 on the roads of Great Britain. This reduces drastically to 314 people over 100 and just 4 aged 107. The last two figures horrify me. I don't particularly worry about old people driving a lethal weapon and killing themselves on the roads; what concerns me is the damage they may do to others. As it happens, the 3 people in the Kia were not badly hurt, but the result could have been very different. It's too early to accuse, as blame has not been proven, but surely the Queen and her family should strongly suggest that Prince Phillip would be wise to hang up his driving gloves.